Changing pub name would be cardinal sin, says archbishop

The Archbishop of Westminster is backing a campaign to stop a pub changing its name and cutting a historic tie with the Catholic Church.

The Cardinal in Victoria was named in honour of Cardinal Manning, a 19th-century Archbishop of Westminster who worked to improve social conditions for migrants. It is a favourite of politicians.

The current Archbishop, Vincent Nichols, is to write to the Samuel Smith Old Brewery urging it to abandon plans to change the pub's name to the Windsor Castle. He said it would mean losing a reminder of the Catholic Church's commitment to the "social good".

Westminster council said the brewery had permission to change the interior of the pub but not the name or the sign. No one from the brewery was available for comment.