Paul Gavan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I want to raise the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland's report into 27 loyalist murders and attempted murders in south Belfast between 1990 and 1998. As the House knows, this report comes on the back of previous reports into loyalist killings in south Down and the north west and is further evidence of a systematic policy of collusion between state forces and loyalist death squads. My thoughts this afternoon are with the families of the 11 people murdered, including a 15-year-old boy, and all those injured as a result of collusion between the British state and the UDA. This follows previous reports into mass loyalist killings in Loughinisland and Greysteel, carried out with weapons that British state agents helped to import and distribute to the UDA, UVF and Ulster Resistance. Eighty people were killed with these weapons and the ombudsman has revealed that those responsible for bringing them in have never been investigated, despite, or perhaps because of, the involvement of state agents. The ombudsman has also said that eight RUC Special Branch agents were involved in 27 murders and attempted murders in south Belfast. One agent was recruited because of his involvement in the “planning, preparation and execution” of previous murders.

The ombudsman has found collusion in each and every killing. Lives could and should have been saved, but warnings about attacks being planned were not passed on and state agents involved in murder were allowed to kill and kill again. There is then the fact that the RUC handed guns back out to loyalist paramilitaries so they could be used to kill again. The fact the rifle used in the Sean Graham Bookmakers attack ended up on display in the British Imperial War Museum clearly shows the total lack of remorse on the part of the RUC, given it was prepared to allow such a key piece of evidence to be displayed like a trophy. It is no wonder the British Government is rushing to implement legislation that would give these agents of the Crown impunity against prosecution.

It is time to address the legacy of the past by implementing the mechanisms agreed at Stormont House in a human rights compliant manner to ensure that families are not left waiting for another decade for truth and justice. I call for an urgent debate on this matter.