Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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I welcome the Minister. Today is the 38th anniversary of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings. I want to extend my continuing sympathy to and express my solidarity with all the survivors and the bereaved of that terrible day. Some 33 people were killed in those bombings, which were carried out by agents acting in collusion with British Crown forces. Of that there is now no doubt. However, what we do not have is accountability and truth and justice from the British Government.

During his presentation to the Joint Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement on 2 February last, Members from both Houses pressed British Secretary of State, Owen Paterson, MP, on the failure of the British Government to disclose relevant documentation. Mr. Paterson told the committee that the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, William Hague, MP, had indicated that "He assured his counterpart here that we have made available the synopsis that is relevant to this case." This apparently refers to a ten-page letter to Judge Barron from former Secretary of State, John Reid, dated 26 February 2002. Judge Barron expressed his frustration regarding the lack of information contained in this letter. He repeatedly requested the British Government for access to the documents themselves but on every occasion he was refused. With a straight face, Owen Paterson, MP, told the committee that the British Government has been "completely straight and up-front". He also stated, "At every opportunity we have made information available". The Irish Government cannot let this go unchallenged.

On 9 February last, the Seanad agreed unanimously a motion which notes that the question of obtaining access to information held by the British Government has been pursued for many years and requests the Irish Government "to continue to raise the matter with the British Government and to press it to comply with this request and reaffirms the support of Members on all sides of this House". This mirrors a similar resolution adopted by the Dáil on my party's proposal at this time last year. Clearly, the Taoiseach and Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade have a strong mandate from the Oireachtas - this has been repeatedly stated and was the subject of a motion passed unanimously by the House a few short years ago - to pursue this issue with real determination with the British Government.

On 18 April last, The Guardian newspaper in Britain reported that an official review has concluded that thousands of documents detailing some of the most shameful acts and crimes committed during the final years of the British Empire were systematically destroyed to prevent them falling into the hands of post-independence governments. Those papers that survived were flown to Britain, where they were hidden for 50 years in a secret Foreign Office archive, beyond the reach of historians and members of the public and in breach of legal obligations for them to be transferred into the public domain. These files related to crimes by British forces in Kenya and other countries. The Government here should certainly ask the British Government if files relating to the conflict in Ireland, the Dublin and Monaghan bombings and other acts of collusion, in particular, were similarly treated. Were some files destroyed and others retained secretly and, perhaps, illegally? We need answers to our questions in this regard.

The final issue to which I wish to refer is that relating to funding for Justice for the Forgotten. This organisation has been the sole representative voice for victims of the conflict in this State for many years. The previous Government ended funding for the group which has done significant work both to support the survivors and the bereaved and to advance the search for truth and justice. In December 2010, Justice for the Forgotten, while retaining its own name and identity, merged with the Pat Finucane Centre and secured a limited stream of funding. However, that did not cover the Dublin office which is now regrettably closed. The entire office has been vacated and its work and files transferred only the other day to a portakabin at the home of the principal voice and anchor of the group's great work. This is simply intolerable and I urge the Government to restore funding for Justice for the Forgotten to allow it resume its efficient and effective work which is much appreciated by the survivors and the bereaved of those terrible acts of 17 May 1974.

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I thank Deputy Ó Caoláin for raising this issue in the House today, the anniversary of the savage and barbaric bombings in Dublin and Monaghan and the tragic loss of life and injuries that resulted. Thirty-eight years ago, three bombs exploded around Dublin, including not far from here, in the busy evening rush hour. Then, about 90 minutes later, another bomb exploded outside Greacen's Pub in Monaghan town. Thirty-three people were killed and more than 100 people suffered injuries in these four bombs. The families of those killed and injured have borne the grief of those tragic events. Although the passage of time may have eased their pain to some small degree, their suffering has not gone away and the memory of their loved ones lives on with them.

The late Judge Henry Barron carried out a detailed and painstaking inquiry into those awful events of May 1974 and other tragic atrocities that took place between 1972 and 1976 in which many other innocent people lost their lives. The Barron report provided some of the answers the families concerned had sought about the bombings and the subsequent hearings of the Oireachtas joint committee provided the families with an important opportunity to have their voices heard and to tell their stories. All the families still have unanswered questions about what happened to their loved ones, about why it happened and how it happened.

This House and Seanad Éireann have previously and unanimously urged the British Government to allow access to documents relevant to these events. I know that many Deputies in this House have raised this issue with our Westminster counterparts and that they will continue to do so. For its part, since this Government took office, the Taoiseach has raised the issue with the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, and the Tánaiste has also raised the matter with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Owen Paterson.

Dealing with the legacy of the past is not an easy task. There is no simple formula of words or actions that can put things right. The Government is strongly committed to working in partnership with the British Government and with our colleagues in the Northern Ireland Executive to find ways to address the legacy of the conflict in Northern Ireland. There is no ready resolution to the complexity of addressing the past. It is, however, a challenge that the two Governments and the executive are determined and willing to undertake. That said, it is also a challenge that all who were party to the conflict must also be willing to take up.

As we progress to a better future for all who share this island and those who live on the neighbouring island, we must not forget those who died, those who were injured and those who mourn them. The Good Friday Agreement recognised the special position of victims. In remembering the victims and their families, we should be strengthened in our determination to construct a changed society in the spirit of the Good Friday Agreement.

This House is unanimous in its message to our British counterparts. I hope we can also send a message of solidarity to the families of those who were so tragically killed in Dublin and Monaghan and, indeed, to the families of all those who lost their lives in the conflict.

Deputy Ó Caoláin referred to the closure of the Dublin office of the Justice for the Forgotten and the issue arising with regard to the storage of its documents. Unfortunately, in current financial circumstances I cannot create funding that is not available. I regret I am not in a position to address the funding issue. I would be happy to ask departmental officials to liaise with the group to see to what extent, if any, we could be of assistance in document storage.

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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Not for the first time, I want to reaffirm my and my party's absolute commitment to addressing the tragic occurrences of the past years and the consequences of the conflict. The critical issue here is the willingness of one of the key protagonists, the British Government, to so do also. There has been a record of failure on its part with minimalist responses to a series of requests by eminent people appointed by the Houses of the Oireachtas to carry out inquiries into the matters in question. It is absolutely unacceptable.

As I said in my opening remarks, there is evidence the British Government has secretly retained vast stores of documents regarding its former imperial presence on the part of past British Governments. The Kenyan situation is one of particular note. It is most likely, given the vast store of documents on the Kenyan situation, that the events of 38 years ago here in this city and my home town of Monaghan have a similar store of documentation and evidence regarding those responsible for carrying out of these atrocities and the raison d'être for their proposition and carrying out. I believe that information is indeed in the hands of the British Government and its surrogate forces in Britain and the North of Ireland.

It is imperative for the sake of truth and justice that they fully comply with the unanimous appeal of this House, one which I and the Minister supported. I urge the Government to readdress this issue with its British counterparts to see the establishment of a full, independent, cross-jurisdictional inquiry. Even in these straitened economic times, I also appeal for a limited restoration of the essential funding to allow Justice for the Forgotten to continue its important work, work it would only be delighted to conclude but only in the context of finality and closure for all of the survivors and bereaved.

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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This debate has provided a valuable opportunity for the House to once again not only express solidarity with the families of the victims of those dreadful bombings but to restate the united position of this House with regard to production of information and documents.

In July 2008, the Dáil unanimously adopted a motion urging the British Government to allow access to original documents held by it relating to the atrocities inquired into by Judge Barron. It directed the Clerk of the Dáil to request the matter be considered by the House of Commons. Seanad Éireann passed a unanimous motion in similar terms in February 2012. The Dáil restated its position on this matter when it adopted a unanimous position in a Private Members' motion in May 2011. Representatives of the previous and current Government have raised this matter with the British Government so far, unfortunately, without success. The Tánaiste has previously raised the matter with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland who has indicated the British Government was not in a position to accede to the request. The Taoiseach has raised the matter with the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, as recently as their meeting during St. Patrick's week earlier this year.

Today's exchange has provided an opportunity to reaffirm the united position which the House adopted with regard to this important issue. It is essential we continue to maintain that united front and I assure the Deputy the Government will continue to raise this issue at every opportunity with the British Government and its members.