Commenting on the letter, Pope Francis said, "We must thank God, who alone guides and saves the church, for having allowed Paul VI to continue until the last day of his life to be father, pastor, master, brother and friend."

The Irish bishops have warned that if the Eighth Amendment is repealed, legislation the government plans to introduce would make Ireland one of the most liberal abortion regimes in Europe. 

A crackdown on drug cartels, started 11 years ago, has claimed more than 200,000 lives and left more than 30,000 people missing.

The most recent member of the current Conservative Party administration to be shown the door, Ms. Amber Rudd, was partly responsible for perpetuating an unpleasant and morally dubious policy that her predecessor in that office had introduced.

“They want to know who they’re talking to,” Father Forge said of police. “Well, we already issue our volunteers with ID cards, so we jumped on that.”