The Vatican has said the devastating report by Australia's Royal Commission into institutional sex abuse is "thorough" and deserves to be "studied seriously".

More than 600 cases of child sex abuse have been confirmed in the Roman Catholic Church in the Australian state of Victoria.

One of Australia’s most senior archbishops apologised to victims of sexual abuse by priests today in a message condemning the behaviour and the Roman Catholic church’s failure to properly deal with the problem.

A Catholic cardinal urged tougher action against paedophiles after the church confirmed two Irish priests accused of molesting girls continued working in Australia's two largest cities despite being barred.