Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)

As I noted in my response, I have only a few moments to go through many detailed questions and I will not have time to go through them all. The Assembly election due on 7 March is an integral part of the process and timetable that we negotiated and to which everyone agreed at St. Andrews. It is being held for the explicit purpose of endorsing the St. Andrews Agreement and of electing the Assembly that will form a power sharing Executive on 26 March in accordance with that agreement and timeframe. That is the sole purpose of this election.

The answer to Deputy Kenny's question as to whether the British Government can cancel the election at any time during the campaign, if it believes the parties are not serious, is "Yes". The legislation provides clearly that it may pull the election at any time, if it believes there is no intent by the parties.

Deputy Kenny also asked when would we move to the different arrangements. I refer to the so-called plan B arrangement, or to what I would rather call our partnership arrangement, between the two Governments. This would take place immediately after 26 March, if there is no intention to set up an Executive.

In respect of the McCord case, the recent O'Loan report, the Barron report, the forthcoming McEntee report and the other reports from Weston Park all come to the same conclusion. There is an enormous amount of correspondence from Taoisigh extending back over the past 30 years. Successive Ministers for Foreign Affairs and Ministers for Justice have raised serious concerns in this respect. Behind all such cases lie many personal stories of lives that have been lost. However, all of the evidence says the same thing, namely, the RUC colluded with loyalist murderers to execute people.

The British Government is in no doubt about this situation. I have pointed this out time and time again. We have received extended co-operation. Will we get the British Government to deal with it and to admit it in the same manner as these reports? I doubt it. Will it hold a tribunal to examine these matters individually and to go back over hundreds of cases? I doubt it. I accept Deputy Ó Caoláin's point regarding "raised" and "pressed". We have done so forcefully and the British Government knows our views in this regard. I have emphasised to Prime Minister Blair that he would be doing a great service, in whatever period he remains in office, if he tried to give a comprehensive response on the British Government's position on these matters. I would much prefer he did so because he understands them and knows the details of such issues.

We await the McEntee report. I am not familiar with its contents. However, in respect of the bombings in Dublin and Monaghan, the work of the Barron inquiry shows there was collusion of some kind in this regard. I also refer to the execution of Seamus Ludlow and the Miami Showband. I have met the representatives and have been involved with them all. One cannot put a tooth into such matters and I have not done so. However, several of these reports, including the Cory report, the Weston Park initiative, the McEntee report, the Barron report and the Hamilton report, show clear evidence that there was collusion.

The question is how to present that detail. The Finucane case was taken up as a result of an agreement made in Weston Park to the effect that a sample of cases, rather than every single case, would be taken up. We undertook to deal with the Breen and Buchanan case while the British undertook to deal with the Finucane case. However, the Inquiries Bill was not satisfactory in the eyes of either this Government, the Finucane family or those international civil liberties groups that have supported the latter.

We can bring this to finality as best we can. We may not resolve them because I do not believe that any single statement can close down all such issues as people have the right to bring them forward. However, it would be extremely helpful if the British Government, and Prime Minister Tony Blair in particular, was to make some progress in this regard during his remaining period.

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