Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)

It is with a heavy heart and some regret that I must debate this report in the Chamber. It really is difficult to respond to an 800-page report that gives a detailed account of the most monstrous, heinous and systematic abuse of children. It is particularly difficult to find words to respond in a short slot in the debate. However, there are a few points I want to put on the record.

It is important when contributing to this debate that we be mindful at all stages of the survivors of the abuse. It is important to refer to those affected directly by institutional abuse as survivors rather than victims because they want to find solace and strength on foot of the revelations and find a way forward so they can recover and get on with their lives.

I find it really difficult to comprehend or rationalise the sick minds of the so-called men of the cloth who perpetrated crimes on the most vulnerable young people in society. It is shocking to learn that so many families, parents and young children placed such trust in these people and that this trust was abused so completely by people in positions of power. It is unquestionable that the perpetrators were not good men put on this earth to carry out the will of God. They were depraved, evil predators and paedophiles who preyed on the weakest and most defenceless and vulnerable in society.

On reading the report after its publication late last week and over the weekend, I felt physically sick to learn of the extent and nature of some of the actions of the perpetrators, the priests. It is impossible to understand the twisted mindset of those people, who were in positions of enormous power and who had considerable influence, and who could destroy, wilfully and knowingly, the innocence of so many young people. It is extraordinary.

Apart from the perpetrators and abusers, what of the eminent bishops and other members of the church hierarchy who conspired to conceal these evil acts? There is no pardon available to them. They clearly abused and denigrated their exalted positions of power. Ultimately, they facilitated the rape and sexual abuse of young children, in respect of whom they, as the senior members of the Catholic clergy, had an enormous duty of care. This duty was completely ignored, abused and breached.

The report is unequivocal in its findings on the degree and nature of the cover-up, about which it states:

The welfare of children, which should have been the first priority, was not even a factor to be considered in the early stages. Instead the focus was on the avoidance of scandal and the preservation of the good name, status and [extraordinarily] assets of the institution and of what the institution regarded as its most important members – the priests.

That suggests a hugely skewed view of the Catholic church in this country. Ireland is not alone in this, but it is what we are referring to now. The Dublin diocese, particularly, was totally warped in how it viewed priorities. The priests, the assets and the reputation and good name of the church were more important than young, vulnerable children. It leaves me without words to respond.

We have to acknowledge that the bishops, priests and perpetrators were not the only ones responsible for the mass cover-up. It is an important point. Irish society as a whole colluded to cover up these scandals. There was a priest who abused numerous children in my home parish. Everybody knew about it. He was moved to a neighbouring parish where he continued the abuse. Many, if not most, lay members of the church, that is, people who went to read at mass and give out communion every Sunday and who were the so-called pillars of the community, knew what had happened and facilitated the cover-up. It is very easy for us to place blame on certain individuals in the church and certain clergy, but the net must go much wider than that.

The Murphy report makes the role played by the Garda Síochána very clear. The report is a damning indictment of the Garda for its failure to investigate, for ignoring complaints and the fact that it chose deliberately to accept that the regulation of the clergy was completely outside its remit. Clearly this was in contravention of the law of the land and any sort of moral duty the Garda has to protect members of our society. Major collusion went on throughout Irish society. It was endemic throughout the land. Lay people, the Garda, social workers and people in a whole variety of positions of responsibility chose to ignore what was happening. It is something we must bear in mind and keep to the fore as we begin planning a way forward for the protection of children in the future.

The congregation of the Roman Catholic Church need to reclaim it. I say that as a member of the Catholic church, and somebody who has a great degree of belief and a high regard for many members of the church. The faith is alive and thriving in the parts of Dublin with which I am most familiar and around the country. We must acknowledge that the hierarchy in the church at all levels, including Rome, the papal nuncio who is the ambassador for the pope in Ireland, bishops and other senior members of the clergy have failed the Catholic church, faith and members of the congregations around the country.

We must remember that the vast majority of people who practice and believe in the faith are good people who want to see faith strengthened and do not want the church to be torn apart and abused by people who are clearly removed from the reality on the ground. In my parish I have heard, as recently as last Sunday, priests speaking from the pulpit who are genuinely shocked, disgusted and let down by what has happened in the church. It is important to acknowledge that.

It is time we achieved justice and truth for the survivors of institutional abuse in Dublin and around the country. I support my party leader in his call for the bishops named in this report to resign. They should resign and should not look to their congregations and other people to advise them. The men concerned are supposed to be men of the cloth, truth and faith. They need to look into their own hearts, do the right thing and resign. That is my firm belief.

To achieve truth and some semblance of respect for the people who have suffered at the hands of many people in the hierarchy of the church we and the Government need to commit to carrying out an investigation into every diocese. I urge the Minister of State to bring that message to the Government.

I have a final point, which is not a matter for legislation but, rather, for the Catholic church. Priests should be entitled to maintain consenting adult relationships and to marry. It is something which I hope can be addressed in the future.

See this speech in context