The decision of a judge to revoke the bail of a 72-year-old man who had raped and indecently assaulted his daughter over a 10-year period has been welcomed by the CARI Foundation.

The organisation, which provides support and therapy to children affected by sexual abuse, said that it was ‘delighted' that Mr Justice Paul Carney ‘had the honesty and bravery to admit his errors and amend them so quickly'.

Earlier this week, Patrick O'Brien from Bray in Wicklow, who had admitted the abuse of his daughter, Fiona Doyle, over a 10-year period, was sentenced to 12 years in prison. However, nine years were suspended and Mr O'Brien was granted continuing bail pending an appeal.

The case caused uproar, with organisations that support rape and abuse victims insisting that it sent out the wrong message and would only act to discourage victims from speaking out.

However on Thursday, Mr Justice Carney revoked bail and Mr O'Brien was sent to prison for three years.

The judge took the opportunity to express his regret at how the case was handled, describing it as ‘inapproproate' and ‘insensitive'. He added that he may have given too much weight to Mr O'Brien's poor health.

Speaking after the case, Ms Doyle said that she felt vindicated by the judge's decision. She appealed to her father not to appeal the three-year sentence ‘as a sign of remorse'.

"He might now feel the loneliness and lack of support and isolation that I have felt for over 40 years," she said.

Commenting on the judgement, CARI chief executive, Mary Flaherty, described the original sentencing as ‘seriously damaging to public confidence in the legal system'.

"Thankfully, this has now been acknowledged by the judge. The unprecedented granting of bail to a person convicted as a result of an admission meant that an abuser was sent out into the community where he continued to be a risk to children, without the mandatory supervisory requirements such as the sex offenders register," she explained.

She emphasised that child sexual abuse ‘has not gone away'. Last year alone, almost 3,000 new allegations were received by the HSE.

"The reversal of this perverse decision now sends out the right message to those who still abuse children in these numbers in our country annually."