Brendan Ryan (Labour)

My view of the role of religion in society is of service to society, not control, regulation or dominance. It corrupted both church and State. We are dealing today in these issues with the evidence of that corruption and its capacity to allow evil people access to the most vulnerable of our children to abuse them in an institutionalised fashion. I do not believe that all the institutions did it, but it was essentially institutionalised.

Let us remember, in addition to what is under discussion, sexual abuse, there was a tolerance of physical violence in our education system. I do not mean total prohibitions on corporal punishment, but there was a tolerance of a level of physical violence in religious controlled schools which should have been a reproach to any Christian. The point I wish to stress is that in terms of redress and compensation—