Divide emerges over clerical child sex abuse inquiry
A bitter divide has emerged between the Archbishop of Dublin and his predecessor over how to deal with the Government's inquiry into allegations of child sex abuse in the Archdiocese of Dublin.
Archbishop Diarmuid Martin has a policy of open access to church files, but the former Archbishop, Desmond Connell, has initiated High Court proceedings to prevent documents being examined by the inquiry.
Lawyers for Cardinal Connell yesterday secured an interim High Court injunction restraining the investigators from examining certain documents.
The documents date from 1975 to 2004 and relate to claims of child abuse against a representative sample of 46 priests in the archdiocese.
The cardinal claims the documents are legally privileged and his lawyers have accused the inquiry of acting outside its remit.
In a statement issued last night, Dr Martin said he hoped the legal matters would be dealt with expeditiously so that the commission can conclude its work.
