Child Abuse Compensation Review 'Unlikely'

This week's publication of a damning report into abuses of children in care while in Catholic church-run institutions is unlikely to spark a review of previously agreed compensation.

Senior Government figures have said there is no basis to renegotiate the 2002 agreement with religious orders that capped their liability for institutional child abuse at €127 million.

Taoiseach Brian Cowen said that, pending legal advice on the deal - the Dáil would not be in a position to force holy orders into making additional contributions.

"I think it's important to emphasise that the State had a contingent liability in any event, and the Public Accounts Committee looked at this in great detail some years ago," said the Taoiseach.

He noted that the 2002 agreement indemnified religious congregations from all redress claims made by victims of abuse in exchange for payments and property transfers totalling €127 million.

The total bill for the redress scheme is likely to be about €1.3 billion. The deal was reached between religious orders and the former Minister for Education Michael Woods - agreed on the day before he stepped down from office.

"The contribution from the orders and church authorities was something that was discussed at the time and it emerged that this was the amount that was being offered.

"There were legal issues there in terms of trying to ensure the maximum amount," he said.

However, Mr Cowen confirmed that there would be a special meeting of the Cabinet next Tuesday to consider the Report of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse, and that would be followed by a two-day Dáil debate.

The current Minister for Education Batt O'Keeffe also said there was no "legal way in which the church could be coerced into going back to renegotiate the deal".

But he added that it was open to the church to "make further compensation available if it so desired".

See: 'No Names' In Catholic Abuse Report