Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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417. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he has had recent discussions with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland regarding the need to establish an independent review into the murder of 11 persons in Ballymurphy in August 1971; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45241/14]

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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The Government has consistently raised the issue of the need to establish an independent review into the Ballymurphy cases, both at the level of the Taoiseach and the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade. On 29 April 2014, the Government issued statements expressing disappointment at the decision of the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland not to appoint a Hillsborough-style panel to review the Ballymurphy cases.

The Government is committed to playing an active and constructive role in dealing with the past, including through raising relevant matters with counterparts in the British Government.

The need to establish a fair, balanced and comprehensive framework for dealing with the past is currently under discussion at the political talks in Belfast convened by the British and Irish Governments. The Government continues to believe that a framework for dealing with the past that better meets the needs of victims and survivors, while also contributing to the peace and reconciliation agenda, is an urgent requirement.