The head of the Catholic Church in Ireland has said he did not assist in a cover-up over the handling of sexual abuse allegations against Father Brendan Smyth.
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Catholic Primate Cardinal Sean Brady confirmed he was present at a meeting when teenagers signed an oath not to reveal the church was investigating the paedophile priest in 1975.
The then Fr Brady was a part-time secretary to the late Bishop Francis McKiernan when he interviewed two of Smyth's young victims, who were made to take a vow of secrecy.
However Dr Brady, who is being sued by one of the Smyth's victims in Dublin's High Court, has maintained there was no cover-up when he carried out his investigations 35 years ago.
"I insist again I did act and acted effectively in that inquiry to produce the grounds for removing Fr Smyth from ministry and specifically it was underlined he was not to hear confessions, and that was very important," he said.
The Father Brendan Smyth case rocked the church and the Irish Government - which collapsed in 1994 over delays in granting his extradition to Northern Ireland to face sex abuse charges.
He was later jailed - where he died - but it has emerged he had been allowed to keep preying on innocent children despite church officials removing his licence to act as a priest almost 20 years earlier.
Three months ago Cardinal Sean Brady insisted he would resign if his failure to act had allowed or meant any children were sexually abused by a paedophile priest.
Survivors of abuse have now rounded on the churchman to keep his word and quit as the head of the Catholic Church in Ireland over allegations he covered-up complaints against the country's most notorious sex offender.
Colm O'Gorman, who founded support group One in Four, said the Cardinal was personally implicated in the gross failures of the Catholic Church in the management of Smyth.
"For another 18 years, as Sean Brady rose through the ranks in the Catholic Church hierarchy, Brendan Smyth continued to rape and abuse children," he said.
Maeve Lewis, of One in Four, said the latest disclosure removes Cardinal Brady's credibility to provide the leadership.
"We cannot know how many children may have been saved from harm if Brendan Smyth had been prosecuted in the 1970s, but all those who were party to the decision to protect him carry a heavy responsibility for the victims suffering," said Ms Lewis.
© Press Association