Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 9 May 2024
64. Deputy Paul McAuliffe asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs for a report on any recent discussions he has had with the British government in relation to the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20771/24]
View answer104. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs for a report on his recent meeting with the Northern Ireland Secretary; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20768/24]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 64 and 104 together.
As co-guarantors of the Good Friday Agreement, the two Governments have a shared duty to realise the vision and commitments of the Agreement that provide the overarching framework for deepening peace, political stability and reconciliation in Northern Ireland.
The UK Legacy Act does not, in my view, advance those shared goals. It is a unilateral approach that moves away from what the two Governments and most parties in Northern Ireland had previously agreed.
I met with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Heaton Harris at the recent meeting of the British Irish Intergovernmental Conference in London on 29 April, as well as in Dublin on 18 April. At both meetings, we had wide-ranging discussions in relation to legacy issues. We had a phone call on 1 May, the day the institution established under the Legacy Act commenced operations.
In the course of these meetings I made clear the Government’s ongoing fundamental concerns in relation to the Act. The British Government are under no illusions about our firm conviction that closing down of inquests and investigations from 1 May is a profoundly retrograde step which will damage reconciliation.
I am keenly aware that the 1 May was a profoundly difficult day for victims and families. In my call with the Secretary of State that day, I drew attention to the media and public focus on the impact of the legislation on individuals.
The Government’s overarching concerns regarding the Act, including the fundamental question of its compliance with the European Convention of Human Rights, are now the subject of an inter-state case, and it is right that the European Court of Human Rights now be allowed to follow the processes required.
I also took the opportunity in these recent engagements with the British Government to raise a number of individual cases that are well known to this House, including that of Pat Finucane, Seán Browne and the Dublin Monaghan bombings. We discussed the Omagh Inquiry which will begin its work in the months ahead. The Government is fully committed to assisting the Inquiry, as it has done in relation to a number of historical inquiries. We want to ensure that there is nothing unanswered in our jurisdiction at the end of the UK inquiry.
Another focus of my recent engagements with the British Government in respect of Northern Ireland has of course been the very positive developments around the restoration of the Assembly and Executive. This Government is committed to doing everything possible to support them as they take forward the important work ahead. I was delighted to take part in the first North South Ministerial Council plenary meeting last month. With all of the institutions of the Agreement now back in place, we have the right conditions to make the most of the many opportunities for cooperation and deepening relationships and understanding across these islands.
Looking forward, there are many other important issues on which we will continue to work closely with the British Government. Our relationship is too broad, too deep, too important, ever to be defined by a single issue. That said, the issue of the legacy of the Troubles is a fundamental one. I will continue to press for an approach to legacy that is victim-centred and human rights compliant. I believe that delivering such an approach, in partnership, is essential to any reconciled future on this island.
