The Scottish Episcopal Church’s Primus, Mark Strange, misled the Church Times last year during an interview when he was asked whether the SEC used non-disclosure agreements.
Strange claimed that he did not “think anyone should be silenced” and that he was “not aware of non-disclosure agreements being used, certainly not in my time”.
He made this claim despite the SEC’s Secretary General at the time, John Stuart, having confirmed in an email that he had “liaised closely with… the Primus” to reach a settlement with an SEC employee that included an NDA and a £30,000 payout.
Stuart stated that he had Strange’s “agreement” for this settlement and that it would be “subject to strict confidentiality on both sides”. He confirmed that the employee would “cease to be employed” by the SEC in a matter of weeks and that an “exit statement” and “job reference” would be agreed.
Stuart’s email, which noted that “information in this email should not be shared with others”, was sent to Strange along with bishops John Armes and Kevin Pearson, amongst other individuals.
When it became apparent that Strange had misled the press, the SEC said, “Non-disclosure agreements have, on occasion, been entered into in the past in the Church. HR processes are handled at the appropriate level within the Church, and therefore the Primus would not normally be involved.”
The SEC did not explain how Strange could reasonably not be involved in this type of process given that he is a trustee of the SEC and shares legal responsibility for its operations and finances.
A member of the SEC said, “You’ll struggle to convince me that Mark Strange didn’t just say whatever he thought he could get away with in the moment to avoid dealing with a tough subject, the truth be damned. One presumes he had no idea that Stuart’s email had been leaked.
“The SEC’s statement is a typically ham-fisted attempt at subterfuge and looks like it was designed to try and throw people off the scent of Strange’s craven behaviour. How could anybody possibly believe that Strange – the Primus and a trustee of the SEC – wouldn’t know about NDAs.
“This is rotten to the core. How are we meant to know when Strange is telling the truth?”
The full text of the email is below, and a copy can be found here. Both have been redacted.
Subject: “Strictly Private and Confidential: GSO staffing matter”
“Dear Members of Standing Committee
This is to inform you that, with regret, we are shortly about to conclude a mutually agreed arrangement with [EMPLOYEE] in terms of which she will leave the employment of the Church.
[EMPLOYEE] is [EMPLOYEE DATA] and I would ask please that you do not endeavour to contact her.
I have liaised closely with Robert, as convener of the committee, and the Primus over this situation and with their agreement, we have reached agreement in principle on a settlement in terms of which [EMPLOYEE] will cease to be employed later this month and will receive, in addition to pay in lieu of her three month notice period, a compensation payment of £30,000, which generously recognises her long period of service to the Church (nearly 16 years).
The arrangement with [EMPLOYEE] will be subject to strict confidentiality on both sides and the information in this email should not be shared with others. As part of the arrangement an “exit statement” and job reference will be agreed with her. That exit statement will constitute the only public statement which will be made on the subject by either her or the Church.
[EMPLOYEE] has been represented during the negotiation by an independent legal adviser, and a contribution towards her legal costs will be funded by the Church as part of the settlement.
I am sorry to have to email in these terms, which I realise may come as something of a surprise to some of you. If you wish to discuss this, please feel free to contact either me or Robert.
Kind regards
John
John F Stuart
Secretary General”