Abuse royal commission: Archbishop Roger Herft told about Graeme Lawrence, by Dan Box, Australian (August 29, 2016)

The Anglican Archbishop of Perth has admitted being told on three separate occasions that a senior priest was a sexual abuser, including of children, but did nothing about it other than speak to the alleged offender involved.

The admission, under questioning before the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse this morning, contradicts Archbishop Roger Herft’s own previous evidence to the commission that “no one ever raised with me” any allegations against the priest.

“That particular statement of mine is not correct,” Archbishop Herft told the commission this morning.

During the 1990s and early 2000s, the archbishop was the bishop of Newcastle in NSW, which is currently being investigated by the commission over the handling of child abuse committed by its priests.

Evidence before the commission states that Archbishop Herft was told on three occasions during the 1990s that the dean of Newcastle cathedral, Graeme Lawrence, was an alleged sexual abuser, including of children.

Under questioning this morning, he accepted that these conversations did take place, but that he took no action as a result other than to ask Mr Lawrence if the allegations were true – which Mr Lawrence denied.

Archbishop Herft said he could not remember either being told about the allegations or discussing them with Mr Lawrence, although he did not dispute the evidence that this was the case.

“I would have met with him. The answer is yes,” he told counsel assisting the commission, Naomi Sharp.

“How is it possible that you have no recollection whatever of meeting one of the most powerful men in the diocese to discuss allegations that he sexually abused a child?” counsel assisting the commission, Naomi Sharp said.

“I cannot answer that question,” the archbishop replied. The diocese also has no record of the conversations taking place, he said.

Archbishop Herft’s testimony today contrasts with evidence he gave the commission in 2013, Ms Sharp said.

Then the archbishop gave evidence saying “When I became bishop of Newcastle in 1997-2005, no one ever raised with me either directly or indirectly any matter that would have brought concern to me regarding the behaviour or otherwise of the dean of Newcastle.”

While he now accepts he was repeatedly told Mr Lawrence was an alleged sex abuser, Archbishop Herft told the commission he did not report this to the police.

Mr Lawrence “was one of the most senior priests in the life of the diocese of Newcastle … I had no reason to doubt that what he said to me was true and that he was trustworthy,” Archbishop Herft said.