http://www.cwnews.com/news/viewstory.cfm?recnum=35403
This brings us to the second theory on why Blair has not yet become a Catholic. Technically there is no ban on a Catholic becoming a prime minister but there is still a provision in British law that makes it a “high misdemeanour” or criminal offense for a Catholic prime minister to advise the monarch on appointments to the Church of England. Catholics were barred from sitting in both the House of Lords and House of Commons from 1678 until the passage of the Roman Catholic Relief Act of 1829. Since that time there has never been a Catholic prime minister.
In recent years there have been several unsuccessful attempts to repeal anti-Catholic legislation. For instance the 1701 Act of Settlement enshrines anti-Catholic sentiment into British law. It prohibits a British monarch or possible heir to the throne from marrying a Catholic. The act was introduced at a time of widespread persecution of Catholics. But the law’s anti-Catholic provisions were enforced as recently as 1988 when the Duke of Kent’s son married a baptized but non-practicing Catholic and was forced to renounce his right of succession. The late Cardinal Thomas Winning, the former Archbishop of Glasgow, branded the act as “an embarrassing anachronism for both the royal family and the British Parliament.” He called for a change in the law to enable Catholics to play an equal role in the life of the nation. In December 2000, the Guardian newspaper called for the law to be axed, insisting that it violated article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which upholds the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion.
Christopher Graffius agrees that anti-Catholic sentiment in British law is “repugnant” and “inappropriate” for the modern age. He argues: “Our laws say something about the standards by which we live. There is still a provision in English law that any Catholic who advises the Monarch should be banned from public office for life. Catholicism is the only religion to be singled out in this way.”
Thank you both for the historical background.
Okay how about this: What if the prince became Catholic? would he have to abdicate the throne?