Churchgoers should take priests out
for a glass of wine or to football matches so they aren't tempted to
become paedophiles, Baroness Scotland has said in an astonishing
outburst.
The former Labour
minister said that many priests have a 'fairly lonely existence' and
need to mix more with their parishioners on a social basis.
The
child protection expert, claimed that church leaders end up becoming
abusers because they are 'isolated', the Daily Telegraph reported.
Baroness
Scotland who is the chairman of the National Catholic Safeguarding
Commission set-up to handle abuse claims, said paedophilia within the
church should not be a taboo subject.
Her
outburst came as official figures showed there was a three-fold rise in
historic child abuse complaints in the Catholic church last year.
She
told the Daily Telegraph: 'One of the things that came out very
strongly from the research is that those who abuse have often seen
themselves as being very lonely, isolated and unsupported emotionally.
She
added: 'The priests and religious people are people too - they need
friendship and comfort and someone to have a glass of wine with and
watch the football or whatever it is. That is something that people
sometimes forget.'
Allegations of sex abuse from the
1950s, 60s and 70s rose from20 in 2009 to 63 last year.
Publicity
surrounding the papal visit is thought to have led to the surge in
complaints.
The types of abuse alleged included
sexual, physical and emotional, as well as four allegations of
child-abuse images - two relating to parishioners, one to a priest and
one to a volunteer.
In total, there were 83 sex abuse claims relating to 103 victims and 92 alleged abusers in 2010, according to the annual report of the National Catholic Safeguarding Commission report.
The allegations from last year have so far
resulted in two jail sentences, two court hearings and one police
caution or warning.
The Catholic Church in England and
Wales underwent sweeping reforms to its child protection procedures
following intense criticism about the way it handled abuse scandals in
the past.
The Nolan report in 2001, ordered by
Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, former leader of Catholics in England
and Wales, made a series of recommendations aimed at stamping out
paedophile activity in the church.
Between 1995 and 1999, 21 of the 5,600 Catholic priests in England and Wales were convicted of offences against children.