IRELAND
Irish Times
Patsy McGarry
Thu, Apr 25, 2013
So it’s goodbye to Ian Elliott. Some in the Catholic Church in Ireland clearly have felt it has been less than good to know him. Then maybe it’s just the beginning of a longer farewell involving the chief executive of the church’s child protection “watchdog-with-a-helluva- bite” and the authorities in Maynooth.
He may yet be employed on a consultancy basis as the review process in the church’s 162 institutions goes on.
It is doubtful whether the Catholic Church on this island has ever owed as much to a Presbyterian where restoring its credibility is concerned. Yesterday’s “gratifying” reports on current child protection practices in six dioceses and one religious congregation would hardly have been possible without his doggedness. He has played a hugely significant role in making Catholic parishes in Ireland today among the safest places for children.
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