Written answers

Thursday, 11 July 2019

Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade

Dublin-Monaghan Bombings

Photo of Brendan SmithBrendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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145. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if he has had recent discussions with the British Foreign Secretary and with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland on the need for the British Government to respond positively to the unanimous requests of Dáil Éireann concerning the Dublin and Monaghan bombings of 1974; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31154/19]

Photo of Simon CoveneySimon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Last 17 May marked the 45th anniversary of the appalling attacks of the Dublin and Monaghan bombings in which 33 people were murdered. The Minister for Justice and Equality, Charles Flanagan TD, represented the Government at the remembrance ceremony in Dublin.

The Government stands in solidarity with all those who lost loved ones or were injured on that day, and who suffer still as a result of these bombings.

The implementation of the All-Party Dáil motions relating to the Dublin and Monaghan bombings is a priority for the Government, as highlighted in the Programme for a Partnership Government.  The All-Party motion on the 1974 Dublin Monaghan bombings adopted by the Dáil on 25 May 2016 has, like those adopted in 2008 and 2011, been conveyed to the British Government.

These motions call on the British Government to allow access by an independent, international judicial figure to all original documents relating to the Dublin and Monaghan bombings, as well as the Dublin bombings of 1972 and 1973, the bombing of Kay’s Tavern in Dundalk and the murder of Seamus Ludlow.

The Government is committed to actively pursuing the implementation of these all-Party Dáil motions, and has consistently raised the issue with the British Government, including at the British-Irish Inter-Governmental Conference, most recently on 8 May last.

I and Minister Flanagan made clear to our counterparts that the absence of a response from the British Government is of deep concern to the Government, and that there remains an urgent need for a response. 

The Government will continue to engage with the British Government on this request, and pursue all possible avenues to achieve progress on this issue, consistent with the request made by this House and until a resolution is found.

The Government maintains a close and cooperative relationship with Justice for the Forgotten, as we continue work to seek the full facts of the appalling events of 25 May 1974 and of other attacks in this jurisdiction during the Troubles.

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