UK Secretary of State has ‘no doubt’ Irish Government will honour legacy commitments

By Rebecca Black, PA

UK Secretary of State Hilary Benn has said he has “no doubt” that the Irish Government will live up to its commitment in the legacy framework.

Mr Benn and Tánaiste Simon Harris unveiled a framework to deal with the legacy of the Northern Ireland Troubles last month.

It includes commitments to fundamentally reform the mechanisms established in the previous government’s controversial 2023 Legacy Act.

It is also to fundamentally reform the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery (ICRIR) to become a Legacy Commission, which will investigate Troubles deaths.

However First Minister Michelle O’Neill raised concern around the blocking of compensation for former internees, a national insurance veto on information retrieval and a “high bar” for legacy inquests to be restarted.

UUP MLA Doug Beattie meanwhile said he has “not one bit” of confidence in the Irish Government’s dealings over legacy.

Mr Benn has indicated that of the 24 inquests halted by the Legacy Act, nine will be able to resume.

The Irish Government has also been criticised for not establishing its own public inquiry into the 1998 Omagh bomb which killed 29 people, including a mother pregnant with twins, in terms of the bombers movements south of the border.

Appearing before the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee on Wednesday, Mr Benn said he made commitments on behalf of the UK Government while Mr Harris made commitments on behalf of the Irish Government.

He said that beyond the Memorandum of Understanding agreed, the Irish Government has committed to pass legislation to enable witnesses to give evidence to the inquiry in the Co Tyrone town, in time for the next session in March.

“I have no doubt at all that the Irish Government will honour its commitments, just as we have already demonstrated with the publication of the Bill, that we will honour ours,” he told MPs.

“We have come together because we know the issue needs to be dealt with,  we know the mess that the last Legacy Act left for the UK Government.

“We know about the interstate case, and the Irish Government moving from their current position, ‘we will have nothing to do with the ICRIR’ to expressing their commitment to the fullest possible cooperation with it, is really important for people in Northern Ireland who were still waiting for answers about what happened to their loved ones.”

He emphasised that all of the legislation and the framework is for one purpose, to “enable us to move forward and to help those (bereaved) families”.

“People will agree with bits and disagree with bits, but I really hope that we can work together as a House of Commons, as elected representatives and Northern Ireland community victims and survivors to say this looks like this could be a way forward, let’s get on with it, and that includes the Irish Government fulfilling the commitments that it has made.”

He ruled out a suggested “trigger mechanism” to ensure the Irish Government acts, saying the UK Government “has to do this anyway” because of the “legal mess left by the Legacy Act”.

Mr Benn said the situation has to be remedied because there is not currently a body which is compliant with article two of the European Convention on Human Rights.

“I’m determined to create such a body by the changes I’m going to make to the commission,” he said.