"Today, words alone do not suffice. We also need concrete steps," De Croo told Francis and an audience of royals, church officials, diplomats and politicians at Laeken Castle, the residence of Belgium's royal family.

Speaking to a crowd of around 39,000 in the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels, the pontiff wrapped up a difficult visit to Belgium by saying, "There is no place for the covering up of abuse."

Pope Francis has pledged to root out the “scourge” of clerical sexual abuse after Belgium’s prime minster urged him in unusually frank terms to take concrete action on the issue, listen to victims and end cover-ups.