Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I take responsibility for not having had the all-party motion debated in the House before now. As I said in the reply, there has been some re-drafting of what was being done due to the Stormont House Agreement. It is now late February, so before the end of March we will have an opportunity to let the Ballymurphy people know there will be an all-party motion, if we can get agreement on it from the leaders and the Whips. I accept responsibility for not having put the motion to the Dáil. It is my fault.

We considered the case of the hooded men because of all the new information that had come to light. We have requested that the European Court of Human Rights look at this. Obviously, when one sets out on that course one would expect that all of the information relevant to that objective would be made available to the court. Clearly, therefore, that would include the information contained on those tapes. If the court is to make a decision in respect of changing the situation in so far as the hooded men are concerned, that stands as part of the evidence.

We have been very clear about the murder of Pat Finucane, and every Member here supports the position. I have raised it with the American authorities and the British authorities, with a very different view from that of the British Government. It was part of the agreement that there would be a follow through on the recommendation of Judge Cory, that there should be an inquiry into this. We continue to stand by that. In the Stormont House Agreement there is an opportunity for all of the information to be given by an independent person to family members who seek information about the death of a family member or loved one. I wonder if that will impact on the situation where the British Government made the decision that Mr. de Silva SC should go through the million pages of paper relating to the Finucane case, and whether there is anything else there that would be applicable in the business of being able to draw down that information and see whether there is anything relevant.

We stand by the Government position. It is a difference of opinion between this Government and the British Government in respect of having a full-scale public inquiry into the murder of Pat Finucane. At every opportunity the matter is raised with the British Government and I continue to do the same with the American authorities. I hope to have the opportunity to raise it with them when I travel there in March. One objective of the Stormont House Agreement was to put together a comprehensive framework for dealing with the legacy of the Troubles. We made clear in those discussions the difference of opinion we have with the British Government in this regard. The Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Deputy Charles Flanagan, told the House that he had raised it with the Secretary of State, Theresa Villiers, at their meeting on 11 February. To be clear on this, we will work with and support the Finucane family in every way we can to follow through on their quest for a full and transparent inquiry into the truth about the murder of Pat Finucane.

If any government is serious about transparency and openness in respect of these matters, whatever information exists should be made available. The British Prime Minister was very clear on these matters. As he said himself, he was only a young lad when many of these events occurred. From his perspective, he said he would like to see an opportunity for completion and conclusion for the families who lost loved ones in all of these circumstances. We have previously discussed in the House the fact that there will not be an opportunity to hold full-scale public inquiries into the several thousand tragic cases but, hopefully, the Stormont House Agreement means what it says and that process can start. The best evidence is proof of the provision of information that is currently off-limits regarding people who have been killed or lost their lives.

In respect of Pat Finucane and Ballymurphy, I will refer back to the House before the end of March and, hopefully, we will get agreement on an all-party motion and have it discussed in the House.

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