Diocese paid ?265,000 to abuse victims

Gordon Deegan
22/12/2004

The Bishop of Killaloe, Dr Willie Walsh, confirmed yesterday that the diocese paid out ?265,000 in compensation last year arising from the past sexual abuse of children by priests.

The payment to two victims appeared in the diocese's annual accounts for 2003.

A spokesman for the diocese also confirmed that the diocese was in the process of making a payment to a third victim.

He declined to say how much has been paid to each victim, stating that the Bishop did not wish to comment on individual cases. The vast proportion of the monies paid to the two victims came from a general Church trust fund, the Stewardship Trust, established by the Irish Catholic Bishops to cover claims of clerical sex abuse.

The accounts show that the trust paid 252,622, while the diocese paid ?79,981 towards the trust in 2003.

The spokesman for the diocese said that instead of seeking the funding from Church members, the diocese's finance committee has decided that its contribution to the trust should come from the proceeds of the sale of six acres of land at the Bishop's Ennis residence to Ennis Town Council for social housing in 2001. This realised 1.5 million for the diocese.

In 1999, the overall Stewardship Trust fund stood at 10.6 million. It is not known how much has been paid from the fund to victims since that time.

The trust also funds child protection and other victim response initiatives undertaken at national level by the Bishops' Conference.

It is understood that the two cases of sex abuse pre-date Bishop Walsh's time as bishop and that the clergy members involved are deceased.

In a statement accompanying the publication of the accounts, Bishop Walsh said over the past years the Church had been darkened by the revelation of the tragedy of serious abuse by a very small number of clergy.

"The diocese of Killaloe has and will continue to play its role in trying to heal the hurt and wounds of abuse.

"Some victims from both within and outside the diocese have sought my assistance in journeying towards that place of healing over the years.

"In helping them on that journey, I have made some finance available from the charitable funds of the diocese towards the provision of counselling."

The payments by the diocese to the Stewardship Trust resulted in a 50 per cent increase in contributions, to ?115,830, to the National Episcopal Conference in 2003. This in part led to a drastic drop in the diocese's surplus of 219,189 in 2002 to 21,234 in 2003.

In 2003, the basic salary for a priest was 16,800, rising with increments for years of service to 20,752.

A spokesman said: "An increase was given in the salary scale in 2004, bringing the levels to ?17,700 and 22,178."

? The Irish Times