‘Opinion-formers are Christophobic’

Is it ethical to snoop around an Archbishop’s sitting-room? Surely, I decide, a gentle stroll around furniture is OK: past a gilt mirror and a large crucifix, past a picture book of the Jewish Haggadah and over to a baby grand tucked into the curve of a bay window. There are two piano pieces on the stand and no sign of Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor — it seems sensible, not sneaky, to see if the music offers any insight into the man’s mind.

The first piece is Chopin’s Grande Valse Brillante; underneath it, Francis and Day’s Community Song Book with optional guitar accompaniment. Then, behind me, a voice, ‘Do you play the piano?’ The Cardinal is smiling, dressed in immaculate black, thinner than I expected, older. No, your Eminence, good morning, your Eminence. I follow him through a door into his study — clean, green and full of framed photos — for what turns out to be a heartfelt discussion about the dismal state of Britain’s moral health.

First on the agenda is abortion, and the Cardinal’s recent attempt to lower the legal time limit for terminations from 24 to 20 weeks. ‘I believe that there is a growing concern about abortion in this country,’ he says. ‘More and more people are realising that it is wrong. I’ve received many disturbing letters from women about the effects abortion has on them years and years after the event. It’s really very upsetting.’

Even non-Catholic women? Even atheists? ‘Yes, yes absolutely,’ says the Cardinal. ‘In my experience, women often feel forced into abortion by pressures of modern life and then regret it much later.’

So what can be done? ‘We need a free vote on abortion and, whatever happens, women with an unwanted pregnancy should be given better help and advice. They should be told about the possibility of adoption,’ he says.