Why are decisions of the Lambeth Conference not automatically binding on Anglican churches?

Decisions made at the Lambeth Conference are not automatically binding on Anglican churches because the Anglican Communion lacks a central authoritative government. The Communion is composed of autonomous national churches, and the conference itself possesses no legislative authority.123

While the Lambeth Conference serves as a vital forum for expressing united Anglican opinion and consulting on theological, social, and international matters, its resolutions function only as guidance. For any decision to carry legal force within a specific national church, it must be formally adopted by that church through its own synodical or constitutional processes. Consequently, the bishops deliberate as equals, and the archbishop of Canterbury—who hosts the event—exercises no jurisdiction over the various autonomous provinces that constitute the Communion.145