The Jehovah's Witness Church in Australia received allegations of child sexual abuse involving more than 1000 of its members over a 60-year period but did not report a single claim to police, a royal commission has heard.

Instead, the church, which has almost 70,000 active members, followed its policy of handling allegations internally.

The opening day of the hearing into the Jehovah's Witnesses at the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse was told that church elders blamed at least two victims for their sexual abuse.

The commission heard that alleged abusers could be cast out of the church if claims were proven but a requirement that at least two witnesses give evidence to an internal judicial committee meant many alleged perpetrators were not questioned.

Counsel assisting the royal commission,Approximately 40 European Union directives could be imposed on Britain in the two-year transition period post-Brexit, according to a leaked Whitehall report.

The document, which was obtained by the Telegraph, shows the UK could have to follow a number of EU laws, underlining it could be powerless to prevent Brussels from enforcing them. One of the most contentious directives would allow the EU to force "clearing houses" to move away from the City and relocate to the continent.

The British capital is the bloc's financial centre and currently processes approximately 75% of euro clearing transaction, worth a combined €1tn (£880bn) a day in an industry that employs thousands of people.

Euro clearing is a crucial part of the financial sector as it guarantees the flow of money around the world. Clearing