Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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I appreciate the Ceann Comhairle giving me the opportunity to discuss this important issue, which I am raising again following a number of meetings that I have had with relatives of those innocent people who were victims of awful actions taken through the collusion of British state forces with terrorist organisations in Northern Ireland. There is a growing frustration among the relatives that they are being left in the dark about plans to review the horrific actions of those individuals and there is an increasing concern that the truth will never come to light.

My party and I understand that dealing with the past is an important part of the Stormont House Agreement and that the implementation of that agreement has stalled due to a failure to agree on certain welfare levels in Northern Ireland. However, l am asking the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade to consider this issue with clear eyes. Failing to progress matters that go to the core of justice within Northern Ireland due to a dispute over welfare changes would strike anyone from these islands or beyond as inexcusable.

Having listened to the stories of many victims' relatives, I believe that it is time for both Governments and the parties to the Stormont House Agreement to re-engage in a meaningful way and seek the full implementation of that agreement. Certain parties' abdication of their responsibilities relating to their previous commitments made under the agreement is shocking. Victims and their families continue to be denied the truth and basic justice.

It is not acceptable that efforts to find out the truth about atrocities such as the Dublin and Monaghan bombings, the murder of Pat Finucane, the murderous behaviour of the Glenanne gang and the activities of the Mount Vernon UVF gang are still being delayed. We have to realise that many families, both North and South, are continuing to suffer because of those atrocities and because they have been denied the basic truth.

When I raised this matter on the floor of the House recently, the Minister, Deputy Charles Flanagan, assured me he would raise the reasonable demands contained in the all-party motions passed in this House in 2008 and 2011, which called for an independent international judicial figure to be given access to all material held by the British Government with regard to the Dublin and Monaghan bombings. I appreciate that the Minister has consistently raised that matter with the Secretary of State, Theresa Villiers. My party leader, Deputy Martin, and I have also raised this issue in a number of meetings with Ms Villiers and the British ambassador. In his most recent response to me in this House, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade assured me that the Secretary of State is "actively considering" the matter. I would appreciate it if the Minister could give me an update on that. Has any progress been made in ensuring access to those papers is given to an independent eminent legal person?

The allegations surrounding the collusion of British state forces with loyalist paramilitaries need to be investigated fully. I ask the Government to continue to pursue this matter with the utmost urgency. Recent RTE and BBC programmes exposed the level of violence that was unleashed when the British state colluded with vicious paramilitary groups on this island. There is a duty on all agencies to ensure the murderers responsible for such heinous crimes are brought to justice. The full truth is needed in the interests of true reconciliation. The horror of the Troubles inflicted by the Provisional IRA and other so-called republican groups, loyalist paramilitaries and agents of the British security forces must be fully exposed.

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I thank Deputy Smith for raising this issue. I am taking this debate on behalf of the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Deputy Charles Flanagan. Recent RTE and BBC documentaries presented a shocking account of allegations of collusion that span three decades. In the first instance, our thoughts are with the families and relatives of those who were murdered in these events, and for whom the documentaries must have been deeply upsetting. The hurt caused by the murder of their loved ones in such vicious circumstances is compounded by the knowledge that elements of the British security forces colluded with such callous crimes. It is a matter of public record that collusion between State forces and paramilitaries occurred during the Troubles. As the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade outlined during a previous Topical Issue debate on this matter on 17 June last, successive Irish Governments have raised the issue of collusion with the British Government in ongoing bilateral relations and through the European Court of Human Rights at Strasbourg. The Minister is continuing to raise the issue of collusion, including in relation to a number of individual cases of long-standing concern, such as the Dublin and Monaghan bombings and the killing of Pat Finucane. He advocates that all relevant documentation should be made available to be examined by the appropriate mechanisms. Such cases must be adequately addressed if we are to achieve a genuinely reconciled and shared society.

Many families, including those bereaved by incidents in which collusion has been alleged, continue to deal not only with the awful pain of losing a loved one, but also with the struggle for answers decades after these traumatic events. The Minister and I understand and acknowledge the frustration of families that have had to contend for too long with inadequate mechanisms for addressing their cases. For that reason, the establishment of a new comprehensive framework for dealing with the past, as envisaged in the Stormont House agreement, remains a priority for the Government. We believe these mechanisms offer the best hope of helping the thousands of families touched by the Troubles, including those affected by collusion. These institutions will include a historical investigations unit to take forward investigations into Troubles-related deaths, as well as an independent commission on information retrieval to enable victims and survivors to seek and privately receive information about Troubles-related deaths. Good progress is being made on the establishment of these institutions, which we believe will assist all victims, including victims of collusion, in their quest for justice and truth.

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister for his reply. In her book Lethal Allies, Anne Cadwallader recounts the stories of 120 people who were murdered by loyalist gangs, some of which were armed from UDR depots. With one exception - a person who was linked to the IRA - none of those 120 people was involved in violence. They were citizens going about their daily work and included active members of the SDLP, the GAA and other local community organisations. I wish to refer to a desperate atrocity for which the murderer or murderers have never been brought to justice. In Lethal Allies, Ms Cadwallader explains:

In between the Dublin bombings of 1 December 1972 and 20 January 1973, Fermanagh-based members of the UDR and UVF carried out three bombings within an hour - in Clones (County Monaghan), Belturbet (County Cavan) [both of which are in my constituency] and Pettigo (County Donegal) - all on 28 December 1972. Two teenagers, Geraldine O'Reilly (aged fifteen) [from Belturbet] and Paddy Stanley (aged sixteen) [from Clara, County Offaly], were killed in Belturbet. Again, no one was brought to justice.

The Minister also referred to the recent BBC and RTE documentaries. All of us were probably aware of the individual incidents, but when we watched the programme it was really chilling to see how it put a background to the carnage and horror that were inflicted on so many innocent people. I had the privilege and honour of being able to speak during the debates in 2008 and 2011 when this House unanimously carried motions calling on the British Government to give access to all papers pertaining to the Dublin and Monaghan bombings to an international independent eminent judicial person. Unfortunately, the British Government has refused to accede to this fair request, which was made by a sovereign Parliament. I appreciate that the Minister, Deputy Varadkar, intends to talk to the Minister, Deputy Charles Flanagan, about this matter. I put it to both Ministers that it is of the utmost importance for the Government to use every forum available to it at political and public administration levels to call on the British Government to respond positively to the requests of this sovereign Parliament. The minimum that the families deserve is the truth. These murderers must be brought to justice. I refer not only to the Dublin and Monaghan bombings but also to the bombing I have mentioned in County Cavan, which is in my constituency. I know the two families that lost young teenagers on that desperate night at Christmas 1972.

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I assure the Deputy that we will continue to raise these long-standing cases, including the Dublin and Monaghan bombings, with the British Government. The Stormont House agreement provides for new ways to investigate the past and facilitate information recovery and for victims and survivors to share their experiences. The Government continues to prioritise the implementation of the agreement, not least because those who suffered the loss of a loved one, or were themselves victims of violence during the Troubles, deserve the best means possible of dealing with the legacy of the past. In that regard, they continue to have the total support and commitment of the Government. I undertake to convey what Deputy Smith has said today to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade. I will make sure the Minister is aware of it, if he is not already.