Seán Haughey (Dublin Bay North, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

As well all know, on 14 July 2021 the British Government published a command paper outlining plans for legislation providing for a statute of limitations ending criminal investigations and prosecutions in respect of Troubles-related incidents, as well as inquests and civil litigation. One obvious intention of these proposals is to prohibit future prosecutions of military veterans and ex-paramilitaries for Troubles-related incidents. This announcement has been rightly condemned, in the first instance by victims groups and their families, and also by the Irish Government, the political parties in Northern Ireland on both sides of the divide, by the Committee on the Administration of Justice in Northern Ireland, by several international human rights organisations, as the Minister has said, as well as UN Special Rapporteurs, Council of Europe commissioners for human rights and by Michael Posner, former US Assistant Secretary of State.

In recent months we have been reminded of some of the appalling violence and tragedies which have taken place in Northern Ireland since 1969. As we have heard, the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland, Marie Anderson, published a 344-page report earlier this month in relation to a number of loyalist paramilitary murders in the 1990s, including the massacre at the Sean Graham bookmakers in February 1992. As I have said in this House before, the report makes for shocking reading. The ombudsman found that there was collusive behaviour between the RUC and the UDA-UFF in these cases. The report also showed that the police gave weapons to these paramilitary organisations. It outlined how records about loyalist informants were destroyed, and it highlighted how warnings were not passed on to those known to be under threat. In January the Police Ombudsman issued another report into the RUC's handling of paramilitary attacks by the UDA-UFF between 1989 and 1993, which led to 19 murders and many attempted murders. Yet again, the ombudsman identified collusive behaviour and brought forward major concerns about the conduct of the police. The report examined the murder of Councillor Eddie Fullerton in County Donegal in May 1991, as well as the killing of four people in Castlerock in March 1993, and the gun attack which killed eight people in Greysteel in October 1993. I recall meeting Councillor Eddie Fullerton in the late 1980s during my Seanad campaign. I must say that he was very hospitable to me when I called to him. His murder was quite shocking to me, as it was, no doubt, to his family and all those who knew him. The January report makes for disturbing reading. The ombudsman is to be commended on her work.

On 1 February, we had a debate to mark the 50th anniversary of Bloody Sunday. On 30 January 1972, 1st Battalion, Parachute Regiment soldiers opened fire on innocent civilians, killing 13 people. As we know, the families of those who were murdered have campaigned for justice ever since and wanted the soldiers involved to be prosecuted. This has not happened and the prosecution of soldier F has run into problems.

The Dublin and Monaghan bombings in 1974 resulted in the greatest loss of life in a single day during the Troubles. It seems beyond doubt that in their efforts to defeat the Provisional IRA and to influence the political process, there was collusion between loyalist paramilitaries, the RUC and British military intelligence, or certainly between elements of those organisations in the case of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings. This is totally unacceptable in a so-called democracy. The surviving victims and the families of those who were killed on that day are entitled to get justice. The Irish Government must continue to raise this issue with the British Government to get it to release the relevant files and documents in this regard, and to seek the truth about these events.

The debate today should be all about their victims and their families. I can only but imagine the daily upset and distress that these families experience as long as these issues remain unresolved. Legacy issues and dealing with legacy matters continue to be major concerns for all those caught up in the violence that has plagued Northern Ireland since 1969. Therefore, the provisions of the Stormont House framework on legacy that were agreed in 2014 must be fully implemented. The Taoiseach, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Government must continue to press the British Government on this issue. There are some signs that the British Government is reconsidering its stance on this matter, certainly in the short term anyway, as we head towards the Assembly elections. I hope it will go all the way and abandon this ill-considered proposal.

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