Cabinet stance on Church deal in disarray

GOVERNMENT policy on the child abuse indemnity deal with religious orders was in disarray last night after the Taoiseach and four of his ministers gave differing accounts of how it is to be handled.

Renewed calls have been made to renegotiate the 2002 deal, which capped the contribution of 18 Catholic orders towards victims’ compensation at €128 million – a fraction of the estimated €1 billion cost that the taxpayer must bear.

But the Government’s reactions left victims’ groups baffled and dismayed after a series of public statements by four cabinet members and one junior minister revealed they had no unified stance or strategy on the issue