Paul Coghlan (Fine Gael)

I join others in complimenting the authors of the Cloyne report. What is chronicled therein is appalling and shocking and I compliment the Ministers for Justice and Equality and Children and Youth Affairs. The State is playing catch-up because this culture of covering up was prevalent throughout society, including in probably every church and organisation. We witnessed this in banking, business and everywhere else. We all need to condemn it.

I compliment the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs on her contribution. I am well aware of the views of the Minister for Justice and Equality and I note the common ground between the Taoiseach's comments last week and Archbishop Martin, who is a good man. There are good people in the church and it is terrible that so many people have brought the church into such disrepute. It will not be easy to repair this damage. Bishops, priests and anyone else in authority who violated or harmed children should be outed and resign. Archbishop Dermot Clifford owned up to the fact that he found Bishop Magee had told lies. He said it was indefensible that he had failed to supervise his own child protection delegate.

The issue regarding the confessional is a red herring. These people do not go to confession. Child abuse was known about and this knowledge should have been available through soft information. We do not have to do anything about breaching the secrecy of the confessional to get at these criminals. I am reminded of the story of the criminal and his son who went to confession one Saturday evening. When they came out the criminal asked the son what he told the priest. The son said he told him about the robberies they had committed in the preceding months. The father exclaimed that one goes to confession to tell one's sins and not one's business. These people will not go to confession to own up to their abuses and we need to wake up to this.

Over the years, the State has failed on the ideals of the 1916 Proclamation and on what was written in 1937 Constitution. However, I am glad we are now dealing with matters and I hope we are dealing with them adequately. I compliment the Ministers on their efforts.