6
Response
Accepted
Self-assessed
Redraft canonical crimes as crimes against the child
Recommendation
The Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales should request that the Holy See redraft the canonical crimes relating to child sexual abuse as crimes against the child.
Published Evidence Summary
The following publicly available evidence relates to this recommendation:
The Catholic Council for the Inquiry confirmed on 30 September 2021 that Book VI of the Code of Canon Law now frames the offence of child abuse as a crime against the dignity of the human person, applying to clerics, non-clerical religious, and lay persons in certain Church roles. This change provides precise guidance for applying penal norms (Official government response to IICSA’s Accountability and Reparations Report, 6 April 2020, last updated 4 May 2022).
How was this assessed?
Assessed by gemini-2.5-flash on 24 Mar 2026
Checked data held on this site (government responses, progress updates, independent evidence)
External sources searched: www.gov.uk, www.legislation.gov.uk, hansard.parliament.uk
Jurisdiction
England
Section Reference
C
Response
Accepted
Response
Accepted
Accepted
UK Government
22 May 2023
On 30 September 2021, the Catholic Council for the Inquiry confirmed that Book VI of the Code of Canon Law determines the penal norms in order to give precise and sure guidance to those who must apply them. The Catholic Council for the Inquiry also confirmed that the offence of child abuse is now framed as an offence committed against the dignity of the human person. It includes clerics, non-clerical religious and lay persons who occupy certain roles in the Church.
Responsible Bodies
Catholic Bishops Conference
Primary
Themes & Tags
Recommendation age
5.4 yrs
Last formal update
1037 days ago