Richard Moth appointed Roman Catholic archbishop of Westminster

Moth, 67, bishop of Arundel and Brighton, becomes leader of 6m Catholics in England and Wales

The new leader of the Roman Catholic church in England and Wales has been named as Bishop Richard Moth.

Moth, 67, was appointed by Pope Leo to replace Cardinal Vincent Nichols as archbishop of Westminster and leader of about 6 million Catholics in England and Wales.

Moth, who was bishop of Arundel and Brighton since 2015, said: “I am moved greatly by the trust that Pope Leo has placed in me, in appointing me to the diocese of Westminster.”

He added: “My first task will be to get to know the priests and people of Westminster and I look forward now to serving them. With them, and building on the firm foundations that have been laid by so many down the years, I look forward to continuing the great adventure that is the life of the church and witness to the gospel.”

He paid tribute to Nichols, saying the outgoing archbishop had “given dedicated service to the diocese and will be missed greatly”.

Nichols, 80, offered to resign when he turned 75 but was asked by the late Pope Francis to stay in his post. He took part in the conclave this year to choose a new pope.

Nichols said he was delighted at the appointment. “I remember being present in Westminster Cathedral on 29 September 2009 for the episcopal ordination of Bishop Richard as bishop of the forces. So today I can say: ‘Welcome back, dear Bishop Richard. You are most welcome indeed.’”

Moth, who was born in Zambia and brought up in Kent, intervened in the debate over assisted dying, encouraging clergy and parishioners to write to their MPs to express their concerns and to ask them to vote against the proposed legislation.

He recently put his name to a statement calling for empathy for “those who come to this country for their safety”, reminding Catholics that Jesus’s family fled to Egypt as refugees.

He has also helped lead the Catholic church’s work on social justice issues in the UK and praised the scrapping of the two-child benefit cap.

Before becoming bishop of Arundel and Brighton, Moth served as bishop of the forces for six years. He is the chair of governors at St Mary’s University, Twickenham and liaison bishop for prisons.

Moth has been an oblate of Pluscarden Abbey, a community of Catholic Benedictine monks in Scotland, for more than 40 years, and is a member of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem.

He will be formally appointed at Westminster Cathedral on 14 February.