The Daily Telegraph Praised by Anglican Church Archbishop Phillip Aspinall for Exposing Evil in Bishop Keith Slater's Church

News.com.au
November 28, 2013

http://www.news.com.au/national/nsw-act/the-daily-telegraph-praised-by-anglican-church-archbishop-phillip-aspinall-for-exposing-evil-in-bishop-keith-slaters-church/story-fnii5s3x-1226770020619

Keith Slater, former Bishop for the Diocese of Grafton, who was asked to resign in May 2013.

The Most Reverend Dr Phillip Aspinall leaves the inquiry.

THE head of the Anglican Church yesterday praised The Daily Telegraph for being the "catalyst" that led to the resignation of Bishop Keith Slater and prompted the latest hearing of the royal commission into child sex abuse.

The Daily Telegraph was preparing to run stories with child sex abuse victim Richard "Tommy" Campion in May this year when a "horrified" church official uncovered the full extent of the Diocese of Grafton's treatment of 41 abuse victims.

"She came to me with the information because she wanted me to be fully informed about the situation before interacting with The Daily Telegraph," head of the Anglican Church Archbishop Phillip Aspinall said outside the commission.

SMILING BISHOP SLATER FAILED VICTIMS OF ABUSE

 

What she had uncovered was a litany of appalling treatment of the victims who were seeking compensation for physical and sexual abuse at the former North Coast Children's Home in Lismore by at least 12 priests and members of staff over 48 years.

"Her coming to me with that information was the catalyst that ultimately led to Bishop Slater's resignation and the royal commission examination of this particular matter," Archbishop Aspinall said.

Bishop Slater apologised in the commission this week for his role in driving down the compensation payments to the victims and repeatedly ignoring them. He also apologised for his habit of smiling at inappropriate moments during harrowing testimony.

The commission heard how the Diocese of Grafton struggled to find cash to pay victims, despite having more than $200 million in assets.

Archbishop Aspinall yesterday called for an external statutory body to set the level of compensation for victims and avoid "the trap that Grafton did in terms of focusing on funding matters to the detriment of victims".

The church would then simply have to find the money - even if that meant selling buildings and land.

Archbishop Aspinall also warned that, in cases such as those at the Lismore home, more victims were likely to come forward. "Sex abuse is far more widespread in the church and in the general community than anybody realises," he said outside the commission.

The hearing has been adjourned and will resume on December 9 with an inquiry into the Catholic Church's response to abuse.

HUNDREDS OF CLERGY YET TO BE CAUGHT Matthew Benns

THERE could be hundreds of paedophile Anglican clergy still holding official titles who have not been identified as sex abusers, the royal commission into child sex abuse has heard.

Lawyers for the church are still reviewing 600 complaints in Sydney alone and expect around 100 of those to have information that needed to be added to a national register of clergy accused or found guilty of sexual misconduct or child abuse. But new names are not being added to the register because the church's professional standards officers cannot work the computer system.

Commission chair, Justice Peter McClennan, said: "It sounds to me like there may be hundreds of potential persons that need to be considered as to whether or not they should go on the register."

Martin Drevikovsky, general secretary for the Anglican Church, denied the figure and said the church currently only expected up to 41 more names to be added.

The register was set up in 2004 but currently only has 129 names on it. This year alone there have been 2644 requests from bishops wanting to check that clergy they are taking on are not on the sex offenders register.

Justice McClennan said there seemed to be "considerable difficulty in relation to both the reliability and practicality of that operation".

The royal commission is examining the response of the Anglican Diocese of Grafton to the claims of horrific physical and sexual child abuse at the former North Coast Children's Home in Lismore by at least 12 priests and members of staff over 48 years.