I had a chat to Paul Cornell over a beer on Wednesday night after his signing in Bath. One of he things he said was how surprised he and Caroline had been by the government’s plans to make it illegal for the CofE to conduct same-sex marriages. Well it turns out he’s not the only one. Yesterday the Bishop of Leicester told MPs that no one in the Church had been consulted. His statement was later confirmed by the Church’s press office. In her statement to Parliament when the bill was introduced, the Culture Secretary & Equalities Minister, Maria Miller, implied that the provision had been added at the request of the Church. Curiouser and curiouser.

Over the years I have developed a tendency not to believe statements by governments and large organizations where public embarrassments are concerned. Goodness only knows what really happened. Possibly the government only spoke to selected right-wing bishops who are now keeping quiet about their part in the process. Possibly the CofE has seen all of the bad press it has been getting and is doing a u-turn. Or possibly the government was more concerned with placating their own back-benchers and tried to shift the blame on the Church. It is all very mysterious. Whatever the explanation, hopefully this will be valuable ammunition for Caroline, Paul and their allies within the CofE.