THE Bishop of Ferns has strongly rejected suggestions that he has not implemented robust child protection measures in response to a government inquiry that identified more than 100 allegations of child sexual abuse against 21 priests.Speaking in Wexford yesterday Dr Denis Brennan angrily dismissed claims that he was not compliant in the area of reporting clerical child sexual abuse.
The claims appeared in media reports speculating on the contents of an audit prepared by the HSE of all Catholic dioceses which is to be studied by the Cabinet today.
Bishop Brennan said that his diocese accepted the findings and recommendations of the Ferns Inquiry when they were issued in October 2005, and he insisted that safeguarding children remained a priority concern for him.
Guidelines
"All allegations of child sexual abuse involving priests -- and former priests -- of the diocese of Ferns, have been handled in line with written guidelines as have issued from both State and Church," Bishop Brennan said.
Bishop Brennan highlighted how the Ferns diocese has taken the initiative of holding "Inter Agency meetings" at which he and diocesan child protection personnel meet with senior representatives of both the gardai and the HSE to share information and concerns.
But Bishop Brennan went on to express his frustration that, since the publication of the Ferns Report, the Government had not met its promise of introducing legislation to give Inter-agency meetings statutory status.
"I would now ask that the Government introduce the necessary legislation to facilitate inter agency exchange of information necessary to assess and manage risk in co-operation with organisations which work with children and young people," said Bishop Brennan.
Bishop Brennan also revealed that the Ferns diocese had not received any allegation of child sexual abuse involving any priest, or former priest, which it has not shared with the gardai and the Health Board.
"At the most recent Inter Agency meeting of all three bodies (it was) stated that this position is true for all three agencies with regard to one another," he said.
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(Source: II)