Cardinal ‘put church before abuse victims’

THE most senior Catholic leader in England and Wales has been criticised for apparently prioritising the church over victims of sexual abuse by priests.

Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the Archbishop of Westminster Diocese, had a ‘lack of understanding’ of the impact of abuse on some victims and ‘seemingly put the reputation of the church first’, the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) found.

It concluded: ‘Cardinal Nichols’ acknowledgement that “there is much more we have to achieve” applies as much to him as it does to the rest of the Catholic church.’

But Cardinal Nichols (pictured) said he will not resign. He said: ‘I was 75 very recently. A few weeks ago, as according to the law of the Church, I sent my resignation into Pope Francis and I have received a very unequivocal reply, and that is that he tells me to stay in office here. So that is what I will do.’

The IICSA report into allegations involving the Roman Catholic Church found evidence of ‘repeated failures’, including a lack of adequate safeguarding and missed opportunities to stop abusers within the church.

It cited the case of Fr James Robinson, who was moved to another parish within the Archdiocese of Birmingham after complaints in the 1980s. He fled to the US but was extradited to the UK and convicted of 21 sexual offences against four boys and jailed for 21 years.