Complaints against Catholic priests and clerics shot up five fold after a
church watchdog urged the hierarchy to come clean about all
allegations.
The National Board for the Safeguarding of Children in
the Catholic Church (NBSCCC) said it was preparing to report 53 cases of
accusations when it sent two letters and an email to the 26 dioceses
and all religious orders.
Inspectors revealed the final figure was in fact 272 allegations against priests, nuns and brothers.
Ian Elliot, chief executive of the Board, declined to identify particular problem dioceses or religious orders.
"We
were genuinely surprised, very disturbed and concerned and
disappointed. All of those emotions. We were frustrated that it had not
been shared with us," he said.
Despite diocesan chiefs and members
of religious orders defying child protection rules by failing to alert
the NBSCCC about all complaints, the watchdog said it would only demand
resignations or enforcement if zero progress had been made.
"It's about evolution rather than revolution," Mr Elliot said.
"For
anyone who wants to continue the culture of secrecy in the Catholic
Church - that is no way forward. There has to be a recognition that
there are some fundamental principles that must not be compromised."
It
is understood the vast majority of the 272 complaints were historic and
a very low number related to allegations in the last year.
These included physical, emotional or sexual attacks and were up on the 197 reported for the previous year.