A SENIOR Anglican bishop has told Lord Carey, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, to “keep his mouth shut” after he revealed details of conversations with the royal family.

David Stancliffe, Bishop of Salisbury, is the first prelate publicly to advise Carey to observe silence about his pastoral work and to accuse him of undermining the work of Rowan Williams, his successor. A number of bishops have privately said they are appalled at the revelations in his memoirs.

In the book, which will be launched at Lambeth palace tomorrow, Carey makes a number of disclosures about the views of Diana, the Princess of Wales on her marriage. He also describes meetings with other members of the royal family in his role as spiritual adviser and with Camilla Parker Bowles.

In an unprecedented attack on a former primate Stancliffe said he believed Carey’s comments were damaging not just to Williams but to the work of ordinary parish priests.

“This has really cut the ground from under the present archbishop if he wants to establish a role as pastor to the royal family,” said Stancliffe. “But there are other consequences, perhaps more serious. If a former church leader cannot keep his counsel, people will ask, can they trust their local priest? Of course they can and should but George Carey’s words don’t build confidence. It is time for George to keep his mouth shut.”

In Carey’s book, Know the Truth, he makes specific reference to his conversations with Diana. He writes: “She often stated her desire to remain married to Prince Charles but I had to conclude that there was little evidence that she was prepared to make the marriage work.”

Carey also brands the princess a “Jekyll and Hyde” character and claims she contributed greatly to the divorce.

While there are a number of attacks on Diana, he lavishes praise on Parker Bowles, calling her “a most attractive and charming person, warm-hearted and intelligent with a down-to-earth attitude”.

Carey also writes about anointing Princess Margaret with holy oil while she was bedridden in Kensington Palace.

At the time of the princess’s illness and subsequent death at the age of 71 in 2002, the royal household declined to give any details of the pastoral care she had received because it was considered an intensely private matter.

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