Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this very important issue. I agree with the Deputy that there must be a full public inquiry into the murder of Pat Finucane - a husband, a father, a brother and a son. Such a public inquiry, as the Deputy said, was provided for in the agreement reached between the Irish and British Governments at Weston Park in 2001. The Oireachtas is of one mind on this. We have reaffirmed this view many times over the years and we will do so again this week with an agreed motion in Seanad Éireann.

This is an important week for the Finucane family. The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Brandon Lewis, has committed to taking a decision on whether to order a public inquiry before the end of November. As the Deputy said, this follows the judicial review of the UK Supreme Court decision in regard to the inadequacy of previous reviews into this murder. Our Government has reaffirmed our position on this issue to the Secretary of State through the Minister for Foreign Affairs. I will engage with the British Prime Minister on this issue and making very clear the consistent view of successive Irish Governments that there should, and must, be a full public inquiry into the murder of Pat Finucane. I also know the leaders of the SDLP, the Alliance Party and the Green Party, with Sinn Féin, have jointly communicated their support for a full public inquiry.

Yesterday, I sat down with Pat's wife, Geraldine, and her son, John, and I made it very clear to them that they would have the full weight of the Taoiseach's office behind their endeavour. For more than 30 years, Geraldine Finucane and her family have campaigned tirelessly to get to the truth of what happened to Pat. It has been a very long journey and they have conducted it with great dignity and determination. The Irish Government has walked with them on that journey and we will continue to do so until the commitments entered into at Weston Park are honoured. That is our commitment.

We note this battle is taking place also in Europe, where, in September, the Council of Europe’s committee of ministers expressed their deep concern that a decision has still not been made by the United Kingdom authorities on how to respond to the UK Supreme Court judgement of 2019.

That is the position right now. We will engage with the British Prime Minister. Given the extraordinary perseverance of the Finucane family, in my view, it is now more than timely for the British Government to respond appropriately in establishing a full public inquiry.

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