Ending prosecutions for Troubles-related killings ‘will help reconciliation’, says NI secretary

The UK government intends to introduce a statute of limitations which would end all prosecutions in Troubles-related cases, Northern Ireland secretary Brandon Lewis confirmed.

The cabinet minister promised a new independent body to help families find out what happened to loved ones in killings and other legacy cases involving ex-paramilitaries and former members of the security forces.

“We know the prospect of the end of criminal prosecutions will be difficult for some to accept, and this is not a position we take lightly,” Mr Lewis told MPs on Wednesday.

The cabinet minister added: “We’ve come to the view that this is … the best way to move Northern Ireland further along the road to reconciliation.”

Victims’ families shared their outrage over the move, while Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said it was “plain wrong” for the government to offer a “blanket” amnesty for crimes committed during the Troubles era.

“I’ve also prosecuted terrorists as the Director of Public Prosecutions, so I know how difficult and how sensitive this is. But a blanket amnesty, including for terrorists, is plain wrong,” said Sir Keir.

Labour accused the government of putting party political interests before the country. Shadow Northern Ireland secretary Louise Haigh said it would be “foolish and unsustainable” to push legislation through without support from any political party in the province.

Ms Haigh told the Commons: “Many have greeted today’s proposals with deep scepticism and wonder if it is more an exercise in shoring up narrow party support than it is in delivering the reconciliation communities in Northern Ireland crave.”

Promising to introduce legislation “by the end of this autumn”, Mr Lewis said it would include proposals for a new independent body to focus on the recovery of information about Troubles-related deaths.

But bereaved relatives who lost loved ones during the three decades of violence were united in outrage against a proposed statute of limitations on legacy prosecutions.

Michael O’Hare, whose 12-year-old sister Majella was shot by a British soldier in 1976, said the legacy proposals set out by Brandon Lewis were an “utter and unacceptable betrayal”.

Julie Hambleton, whose sister Maxine was one of 21 people killed in IRA bombings of pubs in Birmingham in 1974, said: “Tell me, prime minister, if one of your loved ones was blown up beyond recognition … would you be so quick to agree to such obscene legislation being implemented?”

Families of the 10 people killed by soldiers in the Ballymurphy area of west Belfast in 1971 came together to watch Mr Lewis’s statement to the Commons.

Eileen McKeown, daughter of Joseph Corr who was killed in Ballymurphy, said ending prosecutions was a “cynical attempt to bring an amnesty and a plan to bury its war crimes”.

Mark Thompson, whose brother Peter was shot dead by British soldiers in Belfast in 1990, called for the legal rights of “all victims to the conflict, irrespective of their background” to be upheld.

Mr Thompson, founder of the Relatives for Justice group, said: “The truth is the British state has benefited from de facto impunity to date and has never faced the rigour of the law.”

DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said the plan to introduce a statute of limitations for Troubles-related offences would be “rejected by everyone” in Northern Ireland.

The Northern Ireland secretary insisted criminal investigations had proved damaging. “It’s clear the current system for dealing with the legacy of the Troubles is not working,” Mr Lewis said.

“It’s now a difficult, in fact painful, truth that the focus on criminal investigations is increasingly unlikely to deliver successful criminal justice outcomes, but all the while it continues to divide communities and it fails to obtain answers for a majority of victims and families.”

Claiming the government wanted to see “truth and reconciliation” in Northern Ireland, Mr Lewis suggested that ending prosecutions would encourage more people to come forward with information.

The Republic of Ireland’s foreign minister Simon Coveney said Dublin would oppose any unilateral move to end all Troubles-era prosecutions.

Mr Coveney said the UK government plan was not a “fait accompli”, promising he would push for “inclusive dialogue to try to agree consensus”.