Religious orders facing hundreds of allegations of abuse should be “made bankrupt” by a redress scheme for victims, according to Fergus Finlay. 

Almost 2,400 allegations involving 884 alleged abusers were made to a scoping inquiry. 

These allegations covered over 300 schools across the country, and the final report runs to more than 700 pages. 

Irish Examiner columnist Fergus Finlay said there have been “years and years” of abuse from religious orders who “effectively got away with it”. 

“The same thing happens every time – there will be apologies, a few bob and they’ll move on,” he told Newstalk Breakfast. 

The Government has not yet decided on a redress scheme, but Mr Finlay said the State shouldn’t bear the most cost this time. 

“There were redress schemes where there was no doubt the State bore a very significant share of the moral and legal responsibility of what happened,” he said. 

“The State doesn’t bear anything of the same level for what happened to children in for-profit educational institutions. 

“While the survivors of abuse deserve every last penny of redress, it is not the same as saying the State has to foot the bill.” 

Abuse allegations

Mr Finlay said religious orders whose members allegedly abused children for years are “rich organisations that allowed this to happen”. 

The Holy Ghost Fathers, Mr Finlay claimed, have €157 million in assets and should put it to use. 

“I don’t know what an order with a vow of poverty needs with €157 million,” he said. 

“The land, the assets, all of it, should be devoted towards making restitution to the people they tortured and degraded and humiliated and abused over years.”

'Impunity'

Mr Finlay argued that if these religious orders were “a large firm of accountants”, they would be “worried” right now. 

“They would be worried about the large fines facing them, they would be worried about being disqualified,” he said. 

“But because they’re churchmen, they get away with it.” 

Mr Finlay also said he was disgusted by the “impunity” surrounding decades of alleged sexual abuse. 

“Abuse only happens in a society that tolerates it, and we’ve tolerated it far too long,” he said. 

“Every family in Ireland knew about dodgy priests, dodgy brothers, and children were warned about not being in the same room as someone else. 

“That was the way we dealt with it- - we never dealt with it by demanding punishment.” 

The Government has now accepted a recommendation to set up a Commission of Inquiry into further allegations of abuse.