Emer Currie (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I was in Westminster yesterday on British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly business and left just before the House of Lords started Committee Stage of the legacy legislation. I believe there was considerable criticism of it, just as there has been from the Commissioner for Victims and Survivors for Northern Ireland; the Northern Ireland Assembly; the Government; all the political parties on this island; US Congress representatives; Westminster's joint committee on human rights; the Council of Europe and its Commissioner for Human Rights and Council of Ministers; the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights; human rights organisations and, most importantly, victims and survivors who have already criticised and condemned it. Why? They have criticised the legislation because it breaches human rights obligations. The European Court of Human Rights requires states to undertake investigations into cases concerning death and serious injury and they must be independent and effective.

Amendments have now been made to the Bill but immunity from prosecution is now on condition of participation in a review of a case. As long as someone gives an account that is true to that person, to the best of his or her knowledge or belief, there is an amnesty. What kind of threshold is that? There are now consequences if people are lying or do not co-operate, but there is absolutely no way of verifying if they are lying and what the truth is. This is window dressing. The commissioner for investigations must now decide in each and every case if there is to be a criminal investigation, if that is judged to be appropriate. It is not independent in the way that the Stormont House Agreement set out. These are disingenuous amendments to a cynical, offensive and self-serving Bill that is about control, protecting the wrong people and cutting off routes to truth and justice.

We have a new Minister for Foreign Affairs. This would be a good opportunity to invite him to the House for a debate. The Taoiseach discussed this issue with the Prime Minister during the week. What is the point of extensive engagement if it is meaningless? Consent is essential. Thus, the Government must consider and prepare for an inter-state case to Europe about this matter.