AUSTRALIA
7 News
Annette Blackwell – AAP on April 13, 2016
The royal commission into child sex abuse will hold a directions hearing on Wednesday to decide what action to take following the death of former Ballarat Catholic bishop Ronald Mulkearns.
Bishop Mulkearns, who was terminally ill with cancer, died at age 85 last week and was buried on Monday.
The royal commission had wanted to hear further evidence from him about his 26 years – from 1971 to 1997 – in charge of the Victorian diocese of Ballarat, during which time some of the worst cases of child sexual abuse by clergy occurred.
The bishop last gave evidence in February and it was planned to call him again.
The Wednesday hearing will set a timetable for written submissions relating to the Ballarat inquiry.
A further hearing date to receive evidence of four former officers of the Catholic Education Office in relation to the inquiry into the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne is also expected to be set on Wednesday.
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