State indemnity deal with religious orders reckless, says Rabbitte

THE Government’s indemnity deal with the religious orders was scandalously reckless and negligent, Labour leader Pat Rabbitte told the Dáil yesterday.

Seizing on yesterday’s Comptroller and Auditor General’s annual report, which estimates the final bill to the State for the controversial deal at €1 billion, Mr Rabbitte used his time during Taoiseach’s questions to attack Mr Ahern on his government’s handling of the affair.

“Today’s report by the constitutional office of the Comptroller and Auditor General is the most serious indictment of a scandalously reckless, negligent, profligate deal,” he said. Accusing Mr Ahern and the Government of trying to cover up the details of the deal, which limited Church costs to just €127 million, Mr Rabbitte said the Taoiseach had persistently tried to deflect attention away from the issue.