Lynn Boylan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I offer my condolences to the Keegan family on the passing of Christine Keegan. She had to fight for 39 years for justice for her two daughters, Mary and Martina, who perished in the Stardust fire in 1981. For decade after decade, this State has treated the families of the victims of the Stardust fire shabbily. It tarred a working-class community with lies and subjected it to cover-ups. Never did the families give up, however. Christine Keegan was a leader in the campaign. In September 2019, the then Attorney General granted the families of the 48 victims a new inquest into the events of that night. This was a monumental decision taken on the backs of men and woman such as Christine Keegan who refused to give up their fight for justice. It has been ten months since the decision was made and the inquest has yet to begin. Tragically, Christine has died before getting the answers she so rightly deserved. I would like the Minister for Justice and Equality to come to the House to update us on the reason this delay has taken place and to give a commitment that when the inquest is established, it will be given the funding needed to be human rights compliant and will look to the Ballymurphy inquest model as a gold standard on how to treat families who were treated so shabbily in the past. We need this inquest established as soon as possible because the surviving relatives do not have the luxury of time. It is deeply devastating that Christine has died before getting the answers she deserved for her daughters.