Abuse Commission- Costs

Abuse commission has cost EUR17m and may last for eight more years
21/09/2004

The Child Abuse Commission, set up in 1999, has cost more than ?17 million so far, and is now expected to take eight more years to complete. Patsy McGarry, Religious Affairs Correspondent, reports.

The total cost of the commission by the end of last month had reached ?17.3 million - ?8.3 million in legal fees and ?9 million in administrative costs.

Its former chairwoman, Ms Justice Laffoy, had estimated it could take up to 11 years, but after changes announced by current chairman Mr Justice Ryan, commission sources now expect it to last for eight years.

On June 16th last Mr Justice Ryan announced it had been decided there would be no "naming and shaming" by the commission of people accused of abuse in institutions being investigated, and that it would not be necessary to hear testimony from all former residents who had applied to the committee.

Since then, the investigation committee would appear to have secured greater co-operation. In her third interim report last January, Ms Justice Laffoy, who resigned last December, attributed the three and a half year delay in the commission's work to a lack of co-operation with its investigation committee by the State, religious congregations, and lawyers.

The investigation committee resumed public hearings in June. On September 6th last it began hearing evidence about St Joseph's industrial school at Ferryhouse, near Clonmel, Co Tipperary, run by the Rosminian congregation. Currently it is hearing evidence in private from 32 former residents. In November it will look at the Upton industrial school, also run by Rosminians.

Other abuse inquiries making tracks include the confidential committee of the Child Abuse Commission, now entering its final phase of hearing the stories of people who were abused while in institutions. People can give evidence to either the confidential or investigative committees.

The Ferns inquiry into how the abuse issue was handled in that diocese, is due to hear its final witnesses shortly too. Its report is expected within two months. Ferns's costs now stand at ?533,557, of which ?329,280 is legal fees. The Birmingham inquiry, which preceded it, cost ?422,861 (?264,327 in legal fees).

The Catholic Bishops' own inquiry into unsuccessful attempts in 1984/5 to have something done about alleged misbehaviour involving a former president at St Patrick's College Maynooth, Mgr Miche?l Ledwith, has been completed for some time but its findings have not been made public. It has not been indicated that they will be. The matter has also been investigated by the Ferns inquiry, as Mgr Ledwith was a priest of that diocese.

The Redress Board, which awards compensation to former residents of the institutions, will accept applications for redress up to the 15th of December 2005. The total number of applicants is expected to be possibly as high as 7,000. Half that number has been dealt with.

? The Irish Times