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

As we have heard, the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill is due to become law later this year. There has been widespread opposition to this Bill from the Irish Government, from all of the political parties in the North, from victims' groups and their families, and from several human rights organisations. The Bill was published unilaterally by the British Government and is a departure from the Stormont House Agreement of 2014. In response, the British Government brought forward some amendments, as the Tánaiste said, but these do not go nearly far enough. The Council of Europe has stated that the proposed legislation will not be compliant with the European Convention on Human Rights and that it will not allow for effective investigations into all outstanding cases. Will the Tánaiste assure the House that he will keep up the pressure on the British Government to withdraw this legislation? It is deeply offensive to so many people. What else can the Tánaiste do in this regard? Will he reassure the Members that everything will be done to try to persuade the British Government to withdraw this legislation?

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