The head of the Catholic Church in England and Wales today announced he had offered his resignation to the Pope.

The Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, who turns 75 in August, said he had offered to resign in accordance with Canon Law, but Pope Benedict XVI invited him to continue leading England’s Catholics.

The Cardinal told auxiliary bishops and priests in his diocese that he was “content to accept the Holy Father’s request” and would continue his “present pastoral ministry 'donec aliter provideatur'– that is, until he chooses otherwise.”

Canon Law requires all bishops to tender their resignation to the Vatican upon turning 75, but it is common practice for the submission to be declined by the Pope, until he sees fit to appoint someone else.

The Cardinal became Archbishop of Westminster in March 2000 and was promoted to Cardinal by Pope John Paul II a year later.

The first year of his incumbency was marred by a scandal that almost cost him his job.

It emerged that the Cardinal, when bishop of Arundel and Brighton, had failed to inform the police that a priest in his diocese, Father Michael Hill, was a paedophile. After withstanding calls for his resignation, he was cleared by an inquiry and established the Nolan Commission introducing a more rigorous child protection system.