The Vatican has confirmed that Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, who served as Supreme Pontiff from April 2005 to February 2013, has died aged 95.

Bishop Philip Egan, the Catholic Bishop of Portsmouth, has said:

“It is with deep sorrow that I learned of the death of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI this morning. The Church has lost an inspirational shepherd. The Pope’s passing is a great loss both for the Catholic community and for humanity as a whole.   During his long and intense life of service as a spiritual leader and statesman, Benedict demonstrated a unique and inspiring moral authority to the world.

I offer my deepest condolences to all Catholics in our Diocese and to those all around the world who have been touched and inspired by his life.”

A Requiem Mass for the repose of the soul of the late Pope Emeritus will be celebrated in St John’s Cathedral, Portsmouth, in the coming days.