Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate that the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Deputy Flanagan, is present to take this important issue.

RTE did a good public service with its “Prime Time” documentary on collusion between British State forces and loyalist paramilitary groups. Most of us would probably have been aware of most of the incidents outlined in the programme but the actual screening and presentation of those horrific events was absolutely chilling. Monday night's documentary followed on from the recent BBC “Panorama” programme “Britain's Secret Terror Deals”, which examined the extent of British security forces’ collusion with republican and loyalist paramilitary groups. Among the cases covered in Monday's documentary were the Dublin-Monaghan bombings, the murder of Pat Finucane, the murderous behaviour of the Glennane gang and the atrocities of the Mount Vernon UVF gang. These documentaries follow on from the very valuable work carried out by Anne Cadwallader in her bookLethal Alliesand the very important comments of the former Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland, Nuala O’Loan, who spoke on the BBC and RTE documentaries about the hundreds of deaths that happened in Northern Ireland as a result of security forces collusion. Those comments are very significant coming from a retired distinguished official.

We need in this House, at an early date, a full and comprehensive debate on all of these issues involving the treacherous behaviour of British State forces in collusion with groups classed as republican and loyalist paramilitaries. The information that has become available clearly demonstrates the absolute need to establish a full and independent investigation involving all the groups, and this is a necessary part of the reconciliation process.

“Panorama”, “Spotlight” and RTE documentaries expose the level of violence unleashed through British State collusion with vicious paramilitary groups. It is imperative that those involved be brought to justice. We need a full inquiry into this policy, including the release of all papers relating to the Dublin-Monaghan bombings. For real reconciliation, the full truth must be revealed. Monday night's documentary was a harrowing reminder of the depth and scale of the carnage that was visited upon citizens in the North and in the Republic by men and women of violence. The horror of the troubles inflicted by the provisional IRA, other republican paramilitaries, loyalist paramilitaries and agents of the British security forces must be fully exposed and those involved must be brought to justice.

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