Gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell has praised Catholic Bishops for rejecting Cardinal Bertone's blaming of the Church's paedophile scandal on gay clergy.

Mr Tatchell said:
"I commend the Catholic Bishops of England and Wales for their intelligent, calm and accurate rejection of a causal link between paedophilia and sexual orientation.

"Their measured, non-homophobic tone contrasts sharply with the shrill, scapegoating comments of Cardinal Bertone.

"The Bishops are right to point out that a propensity to child sex abuse is not based on a person's sexual orientation but on a sexual fixation with young people.

"The reputation of the Vatican and the Pope has been badly damaged by recent attempts to blame gays, the media and Jews for the public outcry over the sex crimes of Catholic clergy.

"The response of the English and Welsh Bishops is much more mature and reasoned than the nonsense that has been coming out of the Vatican in the last few weeks."

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