Bishop accused of bullying urged not to return to role

Four bishops in the Scottish Episcopal Church (SEC) have asked the Right Reverend Anne Dyer not to return to her role as the Bishop of Aberdeen and Orkney.

The Church's Procurator, Paul Reid KC, decided to drop a number of bullying charges against her, despite finding that there was enough evidence to provide a "realistic prospect" of conviction under church law.

Bishop Anne welcomed the result and said she was looking forward to resuming the full range of her duties in the service of her Diocese "in the days and weeks ahead".

But now four of the church's Bishops - including the Primus, the Most Reverend Mark Strange - have urged her to reconsider.

An open letter he asked her to consider "whether she is still the right person to lead the Diocese".

Bishop Dyer described the intervention as "ill-considered and inflammatory" and accused her colleagues of threatening her in "an unprofessional and un-Christian manner".

Bishop Dyer said: "After all, it was only last week that Bishop Strange himself issued an official statement calling on 'all in the Diocese of Aberdeen and Orkney, and the wider Church, to work together to achieve reconciliation and healing as we look to the future'.

"What they don't say in their public statement is that three of them wrote to me at the start of the week with an ultimatum, giving me 24 hours to agree to step down, despite acknowledging they knew I was on holiday.

"This is utterly inconsistent with Bishop Strange's earlier statement. To say one thing in public and another in private is both duplicitous and misleading."

She said she had been the victim of a "campaign of bullying" by a "small cabal in the church".

"There is no prospect that I will allow them to pressure me into quitting a role I cherish, nor to abandon a Diocese which has shown me overwhelming love and support," she added.

'Strenuously denied'

Graham Robertson, diocesan chancellor for the SEC in Aberdeen and Orkney, said the bishops' letter, sent by email, was "ultra vires" - without precedent.

He said it was "in contravention of employment law and human rights legislation" and it was "no way to treat anyone [...] let alone a sister bishop and a colleague."

Bishop Dyer had been due to face a disciplinary tribunal after three complaints - which she has "strenuously denied" - were made against her.

One of the complaints seen by BBC Scotland News alleges Bishop Dyer "did bully, harass and discriminate" against a diocesan employee, who is understood to have a disability, "to the point that she was signed off work, in breach of SEC safeguarding policies".

She had been suspended since August 2022 while the claims were investigated.

It is understood she will return to the role on 24 October.

A spokesperson for Bishop Dyer denied the allegation and said they would have faced a "detailed and documented rebuttal, including evidence from numerous supporting witnesses, had the tribunal proceeded".

In a document outlining his reasons not to pursue the claims, Paul Reid KC said: "It has become apparent that the prospect of giving evidence, and in particular facing cross-examination in a public forum, is a source of anxiety for a number of potential witnesses".

The lawyer added: "Given the already difficult situation in the Diocese of Aberdeen and Orkney, a public trial very materially risks, whatever its outcome, of making an already difficult situation worse."

The Scottish Charity Regulator has confirmed it is separately investigating complaints about Diocesan accounts.

A spokesperson for the regulator said it could not comment on the ongoing inquiry.