Britain and the Vatican have discussed their approach to protests over clerical child abuse during the Pope's visit to Britain. Pope Benedict XVI arrives in Scotland tomorrow for a four-day visit.
Britain's ambassador to the Vatican, Francis Campbell, has told RTÉ News the issue has arisen in talks between the British Foreign Office and Vatican officials.
Mr Campbell is from Northern Ireland and is the first Catholic to represent Britain at the Vatican since the Reformation.
He has been at the centre of negotiations in the run up to the papal visit.
He said the impact of clerical sex abuse scandals in Britain has been less acute than in Ireland.
Mr Campbell has also told RTÉ News of his embarrassment at having to apologise for a British Foreign Office memo earlier this year which had joked that the Pope should launch a brand of condoms and open an abortion clinic while in Britain.
He said it caused annoyance when it was published in the press and could have destroyed years of planning for the visit.
All-Ireland Primate Cardinal Seán Brady has said the Pope's message during his visit to Britain will also have significance for Ireland.
Cardinal Brady was speaking before he left for Scotland.
'I am very much looking forward to this Papal visit to Britain. I am delighted to be able to accept invitations, from various church and state bodies, to attend engagements and liturgical events at which his holiness will be present.
SIC: RTÉ/IE