Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)

The answer to all the questions is "yes". We had a substantial number of discussions from September 1997 right through 1998. At no stage was there an agreement that the murderers of Jerry McCabe would be included in the Good Friday Agreement. We are talking about something which happened six years ago. This is why these people are in prison for the past six years. Some of them are in prison eight years next month because we said they will not be released. I recall Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness arguing the prisoners should be released after 22 May, but we refused to do so. This is why they are still in prison. If they were to have been released, they would have been immediately. We held to the line that they were not included in the Agreement.

I have answered the question about last October. Yes, they would have been in the position had we obtained a full agreement last October, or last March for that matter, because the March and October agreements were different. We did not get to that position, which is a fact. To say anyone mentioned releasing them on 10 April 1998, or any period up to that, when they were not fully convicted until February 1999, is impossible.

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