Bishop Hegarty, the former Bishop of Raphoe, said in a statement: “I was a diocesan bishop for 30 years, first in Raphoe and later in Derry.
“I now look back and know that my practice in the past was sometimes poor and I am deeply sorry that anyone was hurt through my management of allegations historically. I know that I made big efforts to improve as time went on and this is reflected in the Derry report.”
Dr Hegarty stood down from Derry a week ago, citing ill-health.
His apology came on the day the Derry report found allegations made against 23 priests – but no priest was every convicted in the Diocese.
Dr Hegarty was severely criticised in today’s Raphoe audit (see separate reports) with investigators saying he had managed the issue poorly.
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