Labour redress bill to be referred to Attorney General

Taoiseach Simon Harris has said he will refer a Labour Party bill to the Attorney General which seeks to ensure that religious orders, which ran schools where child sexual abuse took place, are obliged to pay for redress.

The issue was raised by the Labour leader Ivana Bacik who said the State needed to ensure that such religious order were not able to divest assets to lay-run trusts which could be beyond the reach of any redress.

She praised survivors for speaking up, but said the Government had to go beyond condemnation and act.

In response, Mr Harris said Labour's critique was "fair".

He noted that an inter-departmental group had been created following the recent scoping inquiry, and it was examining the issue.

However, Mr Harris gave a commitment tht he would refer the Labour bill to the Attorney General who was also assessing the matter.

He described the abuse of children in our schools as "a stain on our country" in which the pain caused by sins of past continue to destroy lives today.

The Labour leader had sought a timeline for when such legislation might be passed, however the Taoiseach said he could not provide a date, as work was ongoing, but it would be expedited as soon as possible.

In a statement, Ms Bacik added: "Any organisation which facilitates abuse, and even covered it up, must be compelled to pay redress. Survivors of abuse deserve justice.

"Government has called on religious orders to pay their share of redress, but past experience shows that appeals to the moral duty of religious orders cannot be relied upon.

"Some of the worst sexual abuse imaginable has been perpetrated against children while in the care of these religious orders.

"They must pay their share for redress for survivors."