A fifth of General Synod members joined a mutiny in a failed attempt to bar the Archbishop of York from ­addressing the church’s parliament.

With bishops remaining divided over whether he should resign, the Most Rev Stephen Cottrell said trust had been broken in the Church of England in his opening address in London on Monday. The meeting was the first since Justin Welby ­resigned as Archbishop of Canterbury over a safeguarding scandal.

It is set to discuss an overhaul of the way the church deals with abuse cases, debating proposals to move its safeguarding teams to an independent body.

Sam Margrave, a lay member, ­described Cottrell’s position as untenable because of questions over his handling of abuse allegations. He said Cottrell should not be