"This will put the government on collision course with the Catholic Church who claim the “ sanctity of the confessional “ B.B.
"The sanctity of the confessional is , obviously, for people who CONFESS their sins. However if a child goes to a priest to report that they have been abused then that isn't a confession."
In U.K Law if a Priest uncovers a crime he is already duty bound to report it, the fact he learned it in the Confessional is irrelevant. This has been the case since the Reformation.
The loophole that will be closed is that a priest can claim he has not uncovered a crime where what is confessed does not at present constitute one, in HIS opinion, the same applies to an Elder, they will have to report first, and it is up to the authorities to say if a crime has been committed.