A senior Victorian Labor MP, Ann Barker, who has studied the church's Irish response, said Cardinal Pell should appear before the inquiry in his role overseeing the church's initial response to Catholic abuse in Melbourne, and added that incumbent Archbishop of Melbourne Denis Hart also should give evidence.
Cardinal Pell's connection to the issue is twofold: first as the archbishop of Melbourne who dealt with the church's initial response to the scandal, dubbed the Melbourne Response; and second as a younger priest who worked and lived in the diocese of Ballarat, 110 km west of Melbourne.
The Australian reports that the inquiry is poised to undertake regional sittings, with victims from Ballarat preparing submissions and inquiry members describing as inevitable that the committee will sit in the regional city.
A church spokesman said Archbishop Hart expected and planned to appear before the inquiry and remained supportive of the process.