'Offensive' Memo Will Not Affect Pope's Visit

The Vatican have said the Pope's UK visit will not be affected by the "offensive" memo that was leaked to the the Sunday Telegraph.

UK newspapers have reported that advisers to the Pope were starting to regret having accepted the invitation to visit Britain this September after the official papers emerged that suggested he should be asked to open an abortion clinic, bless a gay marriage and launch a Benedict-branded condom range.

A senior Vatican source said: "There are clearly dark forces within the British Government.

"While some are very eager for the visit to go well, there are others who are opposing it. This runs the risk of the trip being remembered for the memo and nothing else."

The memorandum, apparently written by staff planning events for the four-day visit by Pope Benedict XVI, suggested he might like to start a helpline for abused children, sack "dodgy" bishops, open an abortion ward, launch his own brand of condoms, preside at a civil partnership, perform forward rolls with children, apologise for the Spanish armada and sing a song with the Queen.

But Vatican has formally accepted the Foreign Office's unusually frank apology and Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said: "For us the case is closed."

Noting the Foreign Office's apology, Mr Lombardi told the ANSA news agency the incident would have "absolutely" no impact on the Pope's 16 to 19 September visit.

The Foreign Office has stressed the internal memo by a junior civil servant containing "naive and disrespectful" ideas for marking the visit did not reflect its views.

Meanwhile the Daily Mail has reported that the junior civil servant responsible for the memo will keep his job.

Steven Mulvain, 23, who emailed the document to Downing Street and three Whitehall departments has escaped punishment because he was given authorisation to send the memo by a more senior civil servant. The senior Civil servant has been "transferred to other duties".

(LB/GK)