AUSTRALIA
The Age
November 13, 2012
Josh Gordon
State political editor for The Age.
VICTORIA’S parliamentary inquiry into the sexual abuse of children by members of the clergy could be wound back once a Commonwealth royal commission is established.
Premier Ted Baillieu said he did not believe the sweeping royal commission into the abuse of children announced on Monday by Prime Minister Julia Gillard would have gone ahead if his government had not announced its own inquiry.
“Without the Victorian parliamentary inquiry, there would not have been, I don’t believe, the national focus on these issues which have been there in the last few months,” Mr Baillieu said. “I think that has been critical to ensuring we do have a national inquiry, a nationally based royal commission.”
But he did not rule out the possibility that Victoria’s parliamentary inquiry could be subsumed by the royal commission, which will be a broad national inquiry covering a range of institutions.
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