While at Sevenoaks he also served as a consultant editor of the Church of England Newspaper and was also a part-time hospital chaplain in Birkenhead.

Allister has been a member of the General Synod of the Church of England since 2005 and was on the committee which drafted proposed legislation regarding the consecration of women as bishops.

In 2001, Allister attracted media attention after it was reported that he had refused to allow a couple to have the hymns "Jerusalem" and "I Vow to Thee, My Country" at their wedding.

Allister was born on 27 August 1952 in Liverpool, Lancashire (before the county of Merseyside existed),[1][2] the son of a manager of the Mersey Docks and Harbour Company and a nursing sister.

[8] In 2001 he received media coverage when it was reported that he had refused to allow a couple to have the hymns "Jerusalem" and "I Vow to Thee, My Country" sung at their wedding.

In this case the bride-to-be phoned the church while I was on holiday and spoke to the organist who mistakenly said the hymn was not permitted.

He became a member of General Synod in 2005 and was appointed to the commission drafting legislation relating to the possible consecration of women as bishops in 2006, serving until it delivered its proposals in 2008.

[18] On 4 November 2011, he was awarded an honorary doctorate in theology by the University of Chester "in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the promotion of Christian education".

[9] In 1993, in an essay in which he identified as a conservative evangelical, he wrote "Liberalism is one of Satan's greatest weapons against the church.

[24] However, he also called for those who object to the ordination of women to be "treated in a way that allows them to stay in the Church with integrity.”[24] When his appointment as Bishop of Peterborough was announced in 2009, the diocesan website stated that "his views have changed over the years and that, like all Christians, he is on a faith-journey.

[15] He was quoted saying "Today, I'm happy to attend and lead worship in churches of all traditions, from Anglo-Catholic to New Wine ...