Church hands dossier on 47 priests to PSNI

By Alf McCreary 13 March 2006 A dossier containing sexual abuse allegations against 47 priests has been handed over to the PSNI by the Catholic Church, it emerged today. The move was made as the Church unveiled a series of new measures to protect young people from the threat posed by paedophile priests. The dossier of allegations made against 47 priests over the past 40 years was given to both the PSNI and Department of Health. The Catholic Primate, Archbishop Sean Brady, and his fellow bishops in Northern Ireland have also offered to undergo a vetting process to show the Church's commitment to new child protection measures. They are willing to co-operate with the Child Care Unit of the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety and also the PSNI. This is seen by the bishops as an initiative to encourage clergy and laity in the church to follow suit where necessary. Archbishop Brady today announced other measures, including the appointment shortly of a new Director of Child Protection for the Catholic Church in Northern Ireland, as well as a major inter-agency conference to be held in Belfast to discuss effective care for victims of child abuse. Archbishop Brady said: "We cannot undo the hurt of the past but like all organisations we can put in place measures which will enhance the scope of protection to those placed in our care." As part of a wide-ranging review of clergy between 1965 and 2005, which was unveiled by the Primate today, it is understood the Church outlined allegations of child abuse against 47 members of the clergy to the PSNI and the DHSS. Archbishop Brady said: "Some of these clergy were acquitted, some are now dead, some are in prison, and others are no longer in the ministry." The Church will also prepare a Northern Ireland supplement to the child protection guidelines, Our Children, Our Church. And as part of a new all-Ireland policy, a National Board will audit each diocese annually and publish figures on the number of cases of suspected child abuse by Church personnel. http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/story.jsp?story=682394 Dioceses on both sides of the border have released figures Church abuse moves 'are welcomed' The Catholic Church's move to share all information on the possible abuse of children with the PSNI has been welcomed by the government. A director of child protection is to be appointed for the church in NI. Catholic Primate Sean Brady has announced a series of measures in response to the Protection of Children and Vulnerable Adults Order. NIO minister Shaun Woodward said he applauded the moves by the Archbishop and his fellow bishops. "It is my clear expectation that any organisation which is involved with children must have policies and procedures in place that comply with the statutory requirements to protect children as well as conforming to good practice standards," said the minister. "To this end, I welcome moves by the church to produce guidance for NI on this basis." 'Safeguarding children' Archbishop Brady said the welfare and protection of children and vulnerable adults was "a priority for the Catholic Church in Ireland". "As a result we can now say that everything that is in our knowledge from 1965 to 2005 - proven or unproven - has been reported to the relevant authorities. "We cannot undo the hurt caused in the past but we can put in place measures which will enhance the scope of protection afforded to those placed in our care. This remains our priority." He added: "We want the church to be at the forefront of best practice in this area. "We want everyone in the church to know what actions to take if they have concerns about the safety of a child. "We want those actions to be effective and we want to work in full cooperation with the DHSS, PSNI and other agencies who can assist us in safeguarding children." He said the NI bishops were voluntarily offering their own names for vetting as part of the commitment to ensuring best practice. The issue of clerical sexual abuse came to the fore again in recent months following the Ferns inquiry which found that 21 priests had abused children in County Wexford over the past 40 years. Dioceses on both sides of the border have released figures outlining allegations of child sex abuse throughout the years. Story from BBC NEWS:http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/4801388.stm