TAOISEACH Brian Cowen will initially rely on the religious orders to be truthful about their wealth when it comes to discussions about how much extra they should pay to help compensate abuse victims.In the Dáil yesterday, the opposition demanded that an independent audit be carried out of the resources of the 18 orders involved to ensure they pay an adequate amount.
Both Fine Gael and Labour urged Mr Cowen to commission the audit so that a true picture of the orders’ wealth is determined.
But Mr Cowen said he would "in the first instance… place the onus" on the orders to outline what they proposed to do.
"I will then discuss further with them whether this meets our expectations," he said.
He stressed it would have to be clear from the process that "an additional substantial contribution is being made".
Pushed further by Labour leader Eamon Gilmore as to how exactly this process would work, Mr Cowen said: "I intend to do that by discussing with them and placing an onus on them to outline what resources they have available and the contribution they intend to make.
"Then I will discuss the adequacy of the offer and ensure the court of public opinion is of persuasive effect in that respect."
Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny said the orders’ additional contributions should be "neither voluntary nor discretionary", adding that the Government should seek "full recourse from the religious institutions based on the extent of their assets [and] capital resources".
Mr Kenny also questioned why it would take until the end of July for Children’s Minister Barry Andrews to bring forward a report to cabinet on how the recommendations contained in last week’s report of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse could be implemented.
The Dáil is set to debate the commission’s report once the June 5 elections are over, and Mr Kenny said there was no reason why the report could not be completed by then.
But Mr Cowen said the debate would afford an opportunity for Mr Andrews to "outline his general approach and that of the Government".
"Drawing up an implementation plan over the next six to eight weeks is a good approach to take in the context of developing a comprehensive response to the recommendations."
The Taoiseach also stressed the Government intended to meet victims’ groups to ensure their voice was heard in relation to the issues involved.
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