The UK Government introduced the Church Appointments (Repeal of Discriminatory Provision) Bill, a press release from the Cabinet Office and Andy Burnham MP said on 15 September 2026. The bill would remove historic restrictions that prevent a Roman Catholic or Jewish Prime Minister from carrying out the full constitutional duties of the office, including advising the monarch on Church of England appointments.

The release said amendments in the late 18th and early 19th centuries removed restrictions on Catholic and Jewish people in public life, but the restrictions on Church appointments remained. It said these had no practical effect until recently because there had not been a Roman Catholic or Jewish Prime Minister, and that they do not apply to people of other faiths or of no faith.

In the interim, the release said, the Prime Minister had transferred responsibility for Church appointments to the Lord Chancellor so appointments could continue while the bill was considered. The government described the bill as short and targeted, intended to allow any Prime Minister to discharge the responsibility regardless of personal religious beliefs.