a meeting with leo varadkar, or a greeting with leo varadkar, or a greeting with him, the irish primecastle. a5 meeting pope francis here at the castle. as you can see, he is signing a visitors' book. it is fascinating to perhaps try to rid the body language between these two men and to hear more about what they have had to say if details emerge of their private meeting. we know already from interviews that leo varadkar has given that he is talking about a hope for a new chapter in the relationship between the irish state and the church, a reference, of course, to the many decades when the church was the ultimate authority here in ireland and ran like a quasi— state alongside the state. of course, it still has a hugely influential role in the irish state in terms of the running of schools, for example. but it will be fascinating to see what emerges from this desire expressed by leo varadkar for a new chapter in that relationship. pope francis is presenting a gift to leo varadkar, a man who in many ways is the epitome of the new ireland, certainly of the changing ireland sincejohn paul

there he is after giving that speech, with the irish prime minister, leo varadkar. he had some strong words to say in his speech just before the pope got up his speech just before the pope got up to speak. he talked about dark aspects of the catholic church history and he asked for the catholic church to deal with the issues that have been plaguing the church and the time has come for a new chapter. of course, the pope then went on to deliver his message. he talked about the duty of every generation to protect spiritual values in the face of the difficulty that families are facing at this time. he did talk about the grave scandal of abuse of young people under the care of the church. he talked about the betrayal of trust and he said the gravity of the abuse scandal cast a light on many and it served to emphasise the importance of children to the church. so pope francis has given that key speech in dublin. it is a historic visit. it is the first visit by a pope in almost a0 years in a much changed ireland, and he had much to say about many of the controversies that h

that's crucial part of the speech from leo varadkar.ponse to that appeal from leo varadkar. we know pope francis will meet victims, survivors of abuse later today. we will talk in advance about that meeting. once it is over, the church saying that it is up to the victims of abuse whether they decide to speak afterwards about that conversation. he speaks italian. ican i can tell you what the pope has been saying so far is that he is grateful for the invitation to address the people gathered here at dublin castle representing the civil, industrial and religious life. he recognises the friendly welcome he has been given in ireland and a delegation from northern ireland. he reflects on the official reason for his visit to take part in the world meeting of families, and event that happens every three years to reflect on and celebrate the role of the family in the catholic church. he talks about the duty of every generation to cherish and protect ethical and spiritual values. in the face of difficulties faced by families in today's rapidly ev

as leo varadkar mention.ighted to see that and also to pack the whole with such a diverse range of groups. so physically he was making his point but going back to james martin, i was disappointed with what he said in his speech because we have a catholic priest talking to a group of catholics and telling them to be nice to our gp catholics at a meeting that excluded them. — lgbt catholics. so that is crazy. james martin has not so far called for a change in the teaching of the church on human sexuality. james martin, his approach is softly softly, a very strategic locations approached by the vatican and he is asking us for compassion, asking catholics to show compassion to lgbt catholics. compassion is that is in the gift of the victor and allows the dominant one to continue looking at lgbt people as if they were objectively disordered and that is the problem with that. we must leave it there for now and thank you both very much. much more coverage of the visit to dublin coming up throughout the day. we will

the new chapter that the irish prime minister leo varadkar was talking the irish prime minister leo vat the irish prime minister leo varadkar was talking about a little earlier, can it be a new chapter in terms of the relationship between the church and the state, if that isn't what the victims are calling for? everybody has to bring something to the table when you engage in negotiation to end the conflict, and there is no doubt that there conflict between the irish state in the catholic church, so a new chapter can be opened but the catholic church has to come to the table and say this is what we are going to do to make amends. when you still have the catholic church refusing to disclose a lot of the records and documentation, and we still need to have judicial enquiries, then thatjust goes to show you that they are not forthcoming with that, so that is really difficult because you don't have a reliable partner to negotiate wet. that is hugely problematic. if you see the catholic church is not coming forward in this regard then how can you trust it, how can you know down the line that

dublin castle where i am speaking to you from he will be the irish prime minister, the taoiseach, leo varadkar. and he will deliver a speech. that is one of the key parts of this visit to look out for. what will he said on the subject of the abuse of children? will he set out any concrete measures to deal with those who abuse or those who cover up abuse? that is what many are looking for. the eyes of the world are on ireland this weekend for what the pope might say on that subject in the wake of further revelations around the world on abuse, including, most recently, that grand jury including, most recently, that grand jury report in pennsylvania which

yes, that is right leo varadkar broke the mould as the irish prime minister in that he is openly gay,land. he has come to embody this new ireland but we have seen, as the church has lost its authority, and we have seen a dramatic change in the legal landscape to the bans on divorce, contraception have all been lifted. just if you months ago, leo varadkar government held a referendum on whether abortion should be legalised in ireland and the people decided by a margin of two to one that it should be legalised. that was the last moral issue where you could see the influence of catholic teaching being dealt with. leo varadkar has also said in a round of interviews he has given today, what the state of his faith was, he was still searching for the truth will stop thatis searching for the truth will stop that is significant in an every other prime minister before him would have said they were a practising catholic. the fact we now have a prime minister in this country who says he is still searching for the truth and he has not sure what his faith is, that tells us how much this country is

dublin castle where i am speaking to you from he will be the irish prime minister, the taoiseach, leo varadkarl deliver a speech. that is one of the key parts of this visit to look out for. what will he said on the subject of the abuse of children? will he set out any concrete measures to deal with those who abuse or those who cover up abuse? that is what many are looking for. the eyes of the world are on ireland this weekend for what the pope might say on that subject in the wake of further revelations around the world on abuse, including, most recently, that grand jury including, most recently, that grand jury report in pennsylvania which implicated 300 priests in the abuse of more than 1000 children in the 19705 and 19805. pope francis arrived at dublin airport in the last 30 minutes. the alitalia flight brought him from rome with the callsign shepherd one, arriving at dublin airport, where he was greeted by archbishops and the deputy prime minister of ireland and other dignitaries at the beginning of this two—day visit. before we discuss this visit further, let's look at this visit further

the irish prime minister, leo varadkar, has called on pope francis to listen to survivors of abuse atchurch, at the start of the pontiff's visit to ireland. mr varadkar said the wounds of scandals such as the clerical sexual abuse of children were still open. in place of christian charity, forgiveness and compassion, far too often there was judgment, severity and cruelty. in particular towards women and children and those on the margins. magdalene laundries, mother and baby homes, industrial schools, illegal adoptions and clerical child abuse are stains on our state, our society and also the church. people kept in dark corners behind closed doors. cries for help that went unheard. and these wounds are still open. and there's much to be done to bring aboutjustice and truth and healing for the victims and survivors. holy father, we ask that you use your office and influence to ensure that this is done here in ireland and also around the world. women in england will be allowed to take the second of two early abortion pill at home, under a government plan due to take effect by the end of

that was exactly what the irish prime minister leo brad —— leo varadkar called for yesterday, actionsords. but the many catholics here in ireland, this visit couldn't have come too soon. it was overdue as far as they were concerned. a0 years on almost since john paul ii, it was time, they felt, for the pope, or a pope, to visit. a much—needed renewal if you like of the contract between church and people by the presence of pope francis here, because this is still predominantly catholic country. around 70% of people identify as catholic. and the church is still very strong here, faith is still very strong here, faith is still very strong here, faith is still very strong here. so really a crucial moment for catholicism in ireland in many respects. joining me here again at my position overlooking the crowd here in phoenix park is the theologian father eamon conway. your thoughts as you watch this unfold behind you? i have been here with you since early this morning, and we can see the big difference between the darkness and the fog and here now these massive crowds arriving, still pouring

martin bashir speaking to the irish prime minister leo varadkar.ntial rains from hurricane lane have hit hawaii in the pacific ocean, causing flash floods and landslides. all public schools and many offices are closed as residents take shelter. the hurricane, earlier measured as category four has now been downgraded to category three, but authorities still warn it needs to be taken seriously and a state of emergency has been declared — as jon donnison reports. this is what half a metre of rain has done to hawaii — a tropical paradise, transformed. the islands may have so far avoided a direct hit but hurricane lane has made its mark. hawaii will be impacted by hurricane lane, the question is, how bad? right now, the system is really setting up to be a significant rain event. torrential rains. forecasters are predicting over 30 inches in some parts. we are extremely concerned about the potentials for inland flooding — landslides occurring and damage to the transportation and communications infrastructure. many have had to flee their homes with dozens

it was here at dublin castle that the taoiseach, leo varadkar, raised the issue of child sexual abuseened to dominate the visit. bbc religion editor martin bashir reporting on saturday's late news bulletin. but scores of you objected to the reporting along the lines described here... and maureen hogg sent this e—mail about the coverage more widely... finally, one piece of footage from theresa may's trip to africa this week garnered a great deal of attention on both social and mainstream media, as dan walker acknowledged on wednesday's breakfast. when trade is on the agenda, the news footage is usually full of factories, hard hats and the occasional high—vis jacket. but it is a rather different image that has attracted much comment so far. the prime minister dancing with schoolchildren in cape town. the pictures have gained a lot of attention, but is it the sort of attention her advisers had been hoping for? further attention was then given to the prime minister's dancing style with a discussion on the subject prompting ann channon to write... and anne—marie plant agreed... thank you f

the irish prime minister leo varadkar says it's a different country now.nship with the church has changed during that period, like it has for a lot of countries. but i think it's fair to say that ireland is increasingly diverse, increasingly secular, a much more liberal country and a much more globally outward looking than maybe it was 40 years ago. and the relationship with the church has changed, principally because some of the revelations that have occurred around child sex abuse, for example. but also some of the institutions that were run by the catholic church in the past, sometimes on their own, sometimes in corporation with the state, that has caused people, i believe, to look at the catholic church in a different way. let's talk now to michael 0'sullivan, a jesuit priest who met the pope back in the 80s when he visited ireland. mary coll has responded to the "say nope to the pope" campaign. she has tickets to mass but will not be going. colette was 8—years—old when the pope first visited ireland 40 years ago. sister ann was there for the first vis

leo varadkar. let's go to dublin.vincent nichols, the archbishop of westminster, who is in dublin for the pope's visit. very good of you to give us your time tonight. thank you. how important is this weekend, both for you, yourself and how important for the people of ireland? well, it is. it is very important. it is a moment, as we havejust heard in which all aspects of the life of the church are brought to the fore. am of those from the past are very dark and distressing and caused us a great deal of shame. some of them are very positive and that little report shows the great contribution that catholics can make to the well—being of society of the care of the poor. all of these aspects come to the fore and under the spotlight. whenever a pope visit a country, there is period of intense scrutiny before the pope arrives and when he arrives, he draws the attention and then gives expression to those aspects in the life of the church in aspects in the life of the church in a way that is unique and very special. it could b

he will be meeting the irish prime minister, leo varadkar, and delivering a speech in which he will beher things, the abuse of children by priests and in catholic run institutions. we await the year the precise nature of what he will say. —— await to hear. there will probably be an apology. he has issued apologies before, but will there be anything in terms of concrete steps that many of the survivors of abuse on the pope to speak about on this visit? throughout the weekend, we will be bringing you details of all of the events he will be attending, including tomorrow, in phoenix park, the massive mass, a culmination of this world meeting of families that is being hosted in dublin. half a million people are more are expected. there will also be protests, acts of remembrance for the victims of abuse and other victims of catholic institutions, taking place this weekend. a different atmosphere from 1979, and the adulation that greeted john paul ii. we will bring coverage of all of that to you. right now, back to the studio. thank you very much. now on bbc news, it's time for the travel sho

ireland's prime minister leo varadkar urged the pope to take action and use his "office and influence" to make sure clergy accused of sex abuse are brought to justice. ireland has been hit particularly hard by revelations of abuse after a series of government inquiries in recentye s. francis is in dublin for the world meeting of families, held once every three years, and more than 37,000 people have signed. up to atte joining us now via skype from dablin is freelance correspondent amerguson. e amanda we're used to the pope being greeted li rock star, people lining the streets of whatever streets he visit. that was not the case in dublin. why? >> well, it's not necessarily it wasn't the case. there just maybe wasn't the same crowds thpope would have drawn in 1979 when his predecessor visited. certainly there were large numbers of people ls ing the stren dublin, but also there was a large number of protestsers as well, survivors of abuse, who wanted to make their point of abuse scandals. >> sreenivasan: how much hasst the receipt abuse scandal made the news in ireland? and put that in c

today, he is going to be greeted by one of the few openly gay leaders in the world, leo varadkar, ouri have been reading letters in my newspaper this morning from practising catholics who are basically trying to justify and say, listen, there are two sides of this, we are trying to separate our faith from the institution of catholicism. they are looking for guidance. why are we supporting this church which has had so many problems of abuse of children, and so reluctant to change? a moment of reckoning, i think, for catholics in ireland. i think the timing of this could not be worse, a few weeks since the pennsylvania report. it has brought back the whole issue of church abuse to the fore. despite everything we know and we are all discussing, will there be for some people an element of excitement and pride that he is there? ireland proportionally still has the third highest churchgoing population in europe. exactly. in the recent census more than 75% of people ticked the box saying they are catholic. despite the influx of different religions in the last decade. things like funerals and

irish prime minister, leo varadkar, has said he is glad the church is now less dominant in ireland.rew plant reports. dublin has spent weeks preparing for its first papal visit in almost a0 yea rs. its first papal visit in almost a0 years. saturday will bring pope francis to island, with hundreds of thousands expected here in the city's phoenix park on sunday to attend mass. —— ireland. in 1979, whenjohn paul attend mass. —— ireland. in 1979, when john paul ii attend mass. —— ireland. in 1979, whenjohn paul ii came to ireland, 90% of catholics attended weekly mass. contraception, abortion and divorce were against the war here. now that figure is a0% and it is a very different ireland that will greet pope francis. i think in the past deep catholic church had too much of a dominant place in iris society. i think it still has a place in iris society but not one that determines public policy. —— irish society. all determines our laws. many are using the pope's visit to raise awareness of the catholic church's sexual abuse scandal. this art is the ledge and detailing the suffering of vic

leo varadkar argues that.ead —— he wants a good relationship, and the new chapter. many senior clerics are gathered to meet and greet pope francis, along with simon called me, and other government dignitaries. —— simon coveney. you can see the papal flag flying from the cockpit of the alitalia flight. i was mentioning just a few moments ago, about the changing relationship between the people and the church in ireland. attendances at mass are down, but this is still a predominantly catholic nation. but it isa predominantly catholic nation. but it is a nation with more questions for the church. many people wanting the pope to set out a clear plan for how he will deal with priests who abuse children. for those who cover up abuse children. for those who cover up that abuse. yes, they want words of apology, but he has already issued apologies, saying, in the wa ke issued apologies, saying, in the wake of that grand jury report in pennsylvania, which implicated 300 priests in the abuse of more than a thousand childr

it was interesting that you saw the irish prime minister, leo varadkar, saying that this was healthys moved away from near universal catholicism to becoming more secular, and i couldn't imagine a british prime minister saying the same thing. it's extraordinary how ireland has changed since pope john extraordinary how ireland has changed since popejohn paul ii visited. and there were 300,000 attending, but apparently there were few of the last time the pope visited ireland 2 million people turned up in various ways, and i think... ido turned up in various ways, and i think... i do think that these words, and it's notjust me, a retired vatican diplomat and archbishop didn't think the apology was enough, cause he alleges that this pope knew exactly what was going on in many instances, and it's notjust going on in many instances, and it's not just what happened. going on in many instances, and it's notjust what happened. the vast institutional nature of it. but cover—up after cover—up. i get very angry about apologies these days, because they don't seem to mean much. surely there will be

civil leaders and the diplomatic corps, and it was here, at dublin castle, that the taoiseach, leo varadkared the issue of child sexual abuse, which has threatened to dominate the visit. these wounds are still open, and there is much to be done to bring aboutjustice and truth and healing for the victims and survivors. holy father, we ask that you use your office and influence to ensure that this is done here in ireland, and also around the world. pope francis responded with words of repentance and regret, but without offering any specific remedies. translation: the failure of the ecclesiastical authorities, bishops, religious superiors, priests and others, adequately to address these repugnant crimes has rightly given rise to outrage and remains a source of pain and shame for the catholic community. margaret mcguckin was abused in a catholic run children's home and was disappointed by pope francis‘s speech. these words don't wash with us any more. we've heard all these patronising words for a lifetime. you know, so disappointed, and i can imagine what our people are like all over ireland. a

eve of a visit by the pope to ireland, the first for nearly a0 years, the irish prime minister leo varadkarn's daily life as it once was. the catholic church has been caught in repeated scandals over the abuse of women and children in recent years. from dublin, our religious affairs editor martin bashir reports. bishops and priests are not usually pounding the turf at leinster rugby ground. but as ireland prepares to welcome pope francis, it's also hosting this global gathering of catholics. an altar has been built along the touchline, but that's as nothing compared to the challenge of reconstructing the church after decades of scandal. a lot of the pain and the hurt that we felt we were moving on from has resurfaced, particularly for people who were hurt by clergy in the church. and i think the holy father, it's critical that he does something to try and address that. phoenix park, another venue, has been under construction for months. the catholic church and the irish government are spending more than £27 million to host pope francis. the highlight of this weekend's visit will be here on

visit to ireland, we could perhaps think about the desire expressed by the irish prime minister leo varadkar chapter, new relationship between the church and state. of course, the end of the two days, there will be much reflection on whether we are at that point, at the beginning of a new chapter. many of the assessments i have had today from victims of abuse, from lgbt campaigners and others, are already that they are saying, they are not at that point. they do not feel that they are, that ireland and the church is at the beginning of a new chapter. but for many others, they believe that the pope is saying the right things, that he is taking action. so not everyone is happy, but then, we would not have expected that they would be. it has been a long day for the 81—year—old pontiff, showing incredible stamina for someone of his age as he has gone from engagement to engagement with not very much of a break in between, it has to be said. and as i was discussing with father eamon conway, we are waiting to hear, crucially, if any news does come from that 90 minute meeting that he had with surviv

well, earlier this evening pope francis said farewell to leo varadkar, ireland's prime minister, beforerport. the pope is now on his way back to rome following his two—day visit. it was the first papal visit to ireland for 39 years. well, joining you now from dublin is amanda ferguson — a freelance ireland correspondent — who's been covering the papal visit for the washington post. thank you very much forjoining us. a huge amount of anticipation and no doubt a lot of concern from the vatican about how this visit was going to turn out. how would you characterise at? the visit could have come many years ago because the abuse scandals that rocked ireland have been unfolding for the last number of decades. the vatican will be pleased at how the ireland visit went. for the catholics in ireland who got their once—in—a—lifetime opportunity to be on the pope's presence, it was successful, and meeting with the victims of abuse and wanting to draw attention onto their suffering. what they want is truth and justice and accountability to flow. from the people you have spoken to, what did they think

eve of a visit by the pope to ireland, the first for nearly 40 years, the irish prime minister leo varadkarch isn't as prominent in the nation's daily life as it once was. the catholic church has been caught in repeated scandals over the abuse of women and children in recent years. from dublin our religion editor martin bashir reports. bishops and priests are not usually pounding the turf at leinster rugby ground. but as ireland prepares to welcome pope francis, it is also hosting this global gathering of catholics. an alter has been built along the touchline, but that is as nothing compared to the challenge of reconstructing the church after decades of scandal. a lot of the pain and the hurt that we felt we were moving on from has resurfaced, particularly for people who were hurt by the clergy in the church. and i think the holy father, it's critical that he does something to try and address that. phoenix park, another venue, has been under construction for months. the catholic church and the irish government are spending more than £27 million to host pope francis. the highlight of this we

eve of a visit by the pope to ireland — the first for nearly a0 years — the irish prime minister leo varadkarinent in the nation's daily life as it once was. the catholic church has been caught in repeated scandals over the abuse of women and children in recent years. from dublin, our religious affairs editor martin bashir reports. bishops and priests are not usually pounding the turf at leinster rugby ground. but as ireland prepares to welcome pope francis, it's also hosting this global gathering of catholics. an altar has been built along the touchline, but that's as nothing compared to the challenge of reconstructing the church after decades of scandal. a lot of the pain and the hurt that we felt we were moving on from has resurfaced, particularly for people who were hurt by clergy in the church. and i think the holy father, it's critical that he does something to try and address that. phoenix park, another venue, has been under construction for months. the catholic church and the irish government are spending more than £27 million to host pope francis. the highlight of this weekend's visi

. —— what leo varadkar said today.women, is right at the heart of that, and that does not embrace them. i think you are quite right. every child who is created, every child, is a child of god. it doesn't matter into which family had comes. the church of races each child. —— the church embraces each child. i'm saying you are absolutely right, in the past they didn't. i think that has changed. i think what we have seen over the course of the day is perhaps a difference in the level of patience that various people have with the church with its approach, with the church with its approach, with the church with its approach, with the pace of its approach. thank you both very much for a very unjust in conversation. good to hear your thoughts —— very interesting conversation. as evening falls on dublin city, just glancing behind the bright lights of the area we are standing m, in lights of the area we are standing in, in dublin castle, and feeling slightly surprised that it is now dusk. we are looking on at croke park here in

to all of this, the irish prime minister leo varadkarurging the this, the irish prime minister leo varadkar stand against abuse and ensure justice for victims in ireland and around the world. the pope, during his visit, has admitted what he talked about as the church's failure, and he said that action over abuse scandals, repellent crimes, which has rightly giving rise to outrage and remains a source of pain and shame for the catholic community and i, myself, shallow sentiments, he said. he has been meeting victims of abuse including a woman who was assaulted by a priest when she was in hospital, at the age of 13. the pope in knock in county mayo. much more coverage of that throughout the day from my collea g u es throughout the day from my colleagues annita mcveigh, who is there for us. that is the pope's visit to ireland. as we continue this newspaper review, let's go to the mail on sunday. they have got a scandal of 3.6 million nhs ghost patients. what is a ghost patient, what do they mean? if you're someone who is registered on your box but does not exist in reality. the mail on sunday

the irish prime minister, leo varadkar says pope francis will arrive in an ireland where the church hashad too much of a dominant place in irish society. i think it still has a place in irish society, but not one that determines public policy or determines our laws. can certainly express the views and contribute to the debate, as all organisations do, but not in a way that determines public policy. in the wake of abuse scandals in the catholic church, what kind of welcome will pope francis receive? critics are planning protests. but as our correspondent, chris page, reports, the church remains a key part of irish life. 39 years ago, ireland put on a massive display of euphoria, devotion and loyalty. people of ireland... john paul ii was the first pope to visit the country which, at the time, was often described as the most catholic in the world. tomorrow, pope francis will arrive on a transformed ireland. the church's influence is much diminished and its reputation badly damaged. people who were abused in children's homes run by religous orders are preparing to protest. they want the po

justice and healing was a lot of work to do to bring aboutjustice and healing for britain's —— leo varadkarhat the pope has the power to draw large crowds. thousands lined the streets of dublin to see him come past in the popemobile and people have pointed out numbers are diminished from the last visit from the pope a0 years ago but they say do not write off the catholic church here yet, it is a central part of many peoples lives. pope francis's visit continues today, he is going to the west of to visit knock shrine, where a apparition of the virgin mary was said to have appeared in the 18 —— 1800 ‘s. then the pope returns back to dublin, to phoenix park. he will be holding a mass here this afternoon with half a million people expected to attend. you may be able to hear some of the musical entertainment which has got under way at the moment but not much of a sign of many people here yet. it is very wet, so it will be a challenge of people's determination to come and see the pope this afternoon! such as the crowd but pope francis draws, it is like a concert, as we can hear behind you. prepar