Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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129. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade when the historical investigations unit is expected to be established and operational; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13461/15]

Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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The Government believes that addressing the legacy of the past is essential to further progress towards reconciliation in Northern Ireland. For this reason, the Stormont House Agreement provides for the establishment of a number of important new mechanisms, including an independent Historical Investigations Unit, which will take forward investigations into outstanding Troubles-related deaths from the former PSNI Historical Enquiries Team process and the legacy work of the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland.

In addition to a Historical Investigations Unit, the Stormont House Agreement makes provision for the establishment of an Independent Commission on Information Retrieval, an Oral History Archive and an Implementation and Reconciliation Group to oversee themes, archives and information recovery across the framework for dealing with the legacy of the past. It provides further for the NI Executive to take appropriate steps to improve the way the legacy inquests function is conducted in Northern Ireland to comply with ECHR Article 2 requirements. The Agreement sets out that processes dealing with the past should be victim-centred and emphasises the importance of providing services and support to victims and survivors.

Primary legislation to establish the Historical Investigations Unit will be taken forward at Westminster and I understand that the intention is to bring forward legislation as soon as possible to enable the Unit to be established in 2016. Notwithstanding the complex work involved in establishing these mechanisms, I am confident that the British Government shares the Irish Government’s resolve that the new framework to address the legacy of the past is put in place at the earliest opportunity.

The Government has committed to putting all necessary arrangements in place to ensure full cooperation with the Historical Investigations Unit, including legislation if necessary. Any such legislation in this jurisdiction will be a matter for consideration by the Minister for Justice and Equality in the first instance.

The efficient and expeditious implementation of the Stormont House Agreement in its totality is a key focus for the Government. On 27 March I participated in a second implementation and review meeting of the Agreement in Belfast with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and the Northern Ireland Executive Parties; it was a useful opportunity to take stock of progress. The two Governments and the Northern Ireland Executive parties must continue to work collectively to meet the objectives we set together and to ensure that the overall benefit of the Stormont House Agreement is realised for the people of Northern Ireland.