Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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330. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the progress which has been made to reach agreement on measures to address victims' issues since the conclusion of the Fresh Start Agreement; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19065/16]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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The Government committed to full implementation of both the Stormont House and Fresh Start Agreements, including the establishment of a comprehensive framework for dealing with the legacy of the past, and this is reflected in our Programme for Government.

Under the Fresh Start Agreement of last November, the two Governments committed to reflect on options for a process to enable the establishment of the institutions for dealing with the legacy of the past, as had been envisaged in the previous Stormont House Agreement. Shortly after the conclusion of the Fresh Start Agreement, which did not succeed in reaching full agreement on all these issues, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Theresa Villiers, and I agreed that there was merit in proceeding in a way that involved victims’ groups and civic society.

To that end, I wrote to the Northern Ireland Political Parties and over 50 victims’ groups in January this year. I included with my letter the Government’s policy paper on dealing with the legacy of the past in Northern Ireland and invited groups to respond with their thoughts and ideas on ways to move forward on this issue. Furthermore, officials from my Department met with over 20 victims’ groups, from across the community in Northern Ireland, as well as groups representing victims and survivors of the Troubles from this jurisdiction and Britain. The purpose of this engagement was to discuss the legacy institutions and listen to perspectives on their establishment and future operation. Secretary of State Villiers and officials from the Northern Ireland Office held their own round of consultation meetings.

Both Governments remain committed to the establishment of the Stormont House legacy institutions as soon as possible and continue to work to achieve this outcome – engaging both with the Northern Ireland Executive and opposition political parties, as well as broader society.

This determination is underscored by the Government’s view that the comprehensive provisions of the Stormont House Agreement for dealing with the legacy of the past offer the best prospect of bringing whatever healing is possible to those affected by the Troubles. For this to be achieved, it is vitally important that the envisaged legacy institutions would have the trust and confidence of the victims and survivors and their families. Their needs will therefore remain central to the Government’s approach in this area.

I am hopeful that agreement can be reached on the outstanding issues in the near future and that work can finally get underway on establishing the legacy institutions. We owe this to the many victims and survivors of the Troubles.