Brandon Lewis is Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, and is MP for Great Yarmouth.
The challenge of how to address the legacy left by the Troubles in Northern Ireland is one that has faced us for nearly 25 years. Successive Governments have tried and failed to bring forward credible, workable proposals. Since the signing of the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement in 1998, there has been no agreement on the approach to legacy issues in Northern Ireland that has proved possible to deliver, and every year that goes by the opportunity to establish the truth about the 3500 murders in the Troubles becomes ever more remote.
Undoubtedly, this is one of the most complex and sensitive areas of policy I have ever worked on during my time in Government, but this month I brought forward the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill. Finally, victims and survivors of the Troubles will be able to get more information, more quickly about what happened to them and their loved ones, and no longer will our veterans be hounded and hauled in for questioning about events that happened decades ago.
No longer will those who served – and we have explicitly included veterans of the security services and the Royal Ulster Constabulary – be subjected to a witch hunt over their service in Northern Ireland, enduring perpetual cycles of investigations and re-investigations.
While Labour continue to debate whose side they are on among themselves, they have presented no viable alternative proposal that would deliver for victims and veterans alike. This is perhaps not a surprise when their Shadow Secretary of State stood up in Parliament this week and announced that the Labour Party want to ensure that ‘the rights of victims and veterans equal the rights of terrorists’; an appalling insult to all those who have suffered unimaginable pain and trauma following the decades-long conflict.
The current system for addressing legacy issues is disjointed and chronically dysfunctional. It is delivering neither justice nor information to the vast majority of families. We cannot claim to comprehend the intensity of the pain and suffering that victims and their families have endured in the pursuit of information and justice all these years on. For many of them, it is clear that the pain they feel today is just as raw as it was then. I have been moved by their bravery and determination to get to the truth, and it is a determination that I share.
Undeniably, it is an incredibly difficult reality to confront that the chances of securing a successful prosecution for a Troubles-related crime are negligible, because of the passage of time and the quality of evidence now available. Two-thirds of Troubles cases are more than 40 years old, and we have seen case after case collapse in recent years. Our Legacy Bill is a definitive move to a model that focusses primarily on information and reconciliation in recognition of that fact.
This legislation will help ensure that more victims and survivors – the overwhelming majority of whom are victims of terrorist violence – are able to obtain answers about those who caused them harm.
The Bill will establish a new independent commission for information recovery, the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery, with all the powers necessary to conduct robust, effective and thorough investigations into Troubles-related deaths and serious injuries. The powers will be supported by a legal requirement of full disclosure from Government departments, security services and agencies. If there are uncomfortable truths that come out about the conduct of the Government during the course of this process, then we will have to take responsibility for those. And others will also have to do the same.
In exchange for a truthful account, given to the best of their knowledge and belief, of their involvement in a Troubles-related death or serious injury, the new commission will be able to grant individuals immunity from prosecution. If terrorists do not comply or are not deemed to have cooperated or given a truthful account – and many feel bound by a ‘code of honour’ not to do so – then the result of the Commission’s investigations will be passed to prosecutors and those suspected of crimes will be pursued.
There will be nowhere to hide, no ‘letter of comfort’ to get them off the hook. I have made clear on the floor of the House that the scheme initiated by the Labour Government at the time for the so-called ‘on the runs’ has no legal basis and will not be able to be used to prevent prosecutions under this new process.
This new approach is the result of much debate and deliberation: we have taken the time to get this right. It reflects the hugely challenging compromises that have been made to support the peace process since 1998 by the British and Irish Governments. This includes the early release of prisoners, the process of secretly decommissioning weapons, and an effective amnesty for those who provide information to the Independent Commission for the Location of Victims’ Remains. While we believe that those decisions were right for the peace process, it is also true that the overall approach to legacy had not been adjusted to reflect those changes.
Michael McDowell, who served as the Irish Government’s Attorney General between 1999 and 2002, has himself outlined the ‘de facto moratorium on investigation and prosecution of IRA members’ that the Irish Government has implemented since 1998. While many may not be willing to confront this fact, we believe we must be honest about the reality of where we are, not where we wish we were.
There has been a huge imbalance in the focus of legacy investigations, which has resulted in faith in the criminal justice system in Northern Ireland becoming increasingly strained. Some estimates suggest that armed forces veterans are 50 times more likely to be prosecuted than those who were members of terrorist organisations.
Specialist law firms who campaign on legacy issues, funded primarily by legal aid, have been able to peddle false hope and profit from the pain of those seeking answers about what happened to their loved ones. Until now, the primary way to do that has been through protracted and adversarial legal processes that are delivering neither justice nor information in the overwhelming majority of cases.
This feeds a pernicious and distorted view of the past, promoted and peddled by those with a vested interest in presenting the British state as the aggressor, when the truth is that terrorist organisations were responsible for the vast majority of deaths in Northern Ireland.
We must halt the rewriting of history and set the events of the Troubles in their appropriate historical context. That is why the Bill will also set up a major new oral history initiative. It will be one of the most ambitious and comprehensive approaches to oral history that has been attempted, will draw on established international models, and will concentrate on collating lived experiences and testimony from those who want to share their stories.
We will also establish an expert-led memorialisation strategy that will lay the groundwork for new structures and initiatives to commemorate the events of the past in a way that is inclusive but also, crucially, fair and balanced.
I will also be commissioning an official history of the UK Government’s policy in Northern Ireland – conducted independently of the Government – which will also help to develop a clearer understanding of what happened during the Troubles.
Taken together, I believe this will represent a hugely significant step towards enabling lasting reconciliation for all of Northern Ireland’s people, but it will require honesty in confronting the painful reality of where we are and the many difficult compromises already made in the name of peace.
As the historic Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement approaches its 25th anniversary next year, now is the moment to move forward in finally dealing with the terrible legacy left by the Troubles. This legislation will be hugely challenging for many, but compassion and commitment to truth and accountability is the only way we can move forward in peace, bring understanding and reconciliation for the next generation and enable Northern Ireland society to look forwards, rather than continually backwards at its divisive past.
Brandon Lewis is Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, and is MP for Great Yarmouth.
The challenge of how to address the legacy left by the Troubles in Northern Ireland is one that has faced us for nearly 25 years. Successive Governments have tried and failed to bring forward credible, workable proposals. Since the signing of the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement in 1998, there has been no agreement on the approach to legacy issues in Northern Ireland that has proved possible to deliver, and every year that goes by the opportunity to establish the truth about the 3500 murders in the Troubles becomes ever more remote.
Undoubtedly, this is one of the most complex and sensitive areas of policy I have ever worked on during my time in Government, but this month I brought forward the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill. Finally, victims and survivors of the Troubles will be able to get more information, more quickly about what happened to them and their loved ones, and no longer will our veterans be hounded and hauled in for questioning about events that happened decades ago.
No longer will those who served – and we have explicitly included veterans of the security services and the Royal Ulster Constabulary – be subjected to a witch hunt over their service in Northern Ireland, enduring perpetual cycles of investigations and re-investigations.
While Labour continue to debate whose side they are on among themselves, they have presented no viable alternative proposal that would deliver for victims and veterans alike. This is perhaps not a surprise when their Shadow Secretary of State stood up in Parliament this week and announced that the Labour Party want to ensure that ‘the rights of victims and veterans equal the rights of terrorists’; an appalling insult to all those who have suffered unimaginable pain and trauma following the decades-long conflict.
The current system for addressing legacy issues is disjointed and chronically dysfunctional. It is delivering neither justice nor information to the vast majority of families. We cannot claim to comprehend the intensity of the pain and suffering that victims and their families have endured in the pursuit of information and justice all these years on. For many of them, it is clear that the pain they feel today is just as raw as it was then. I have been moved by their bravery and determination to get to the truth, and it is a determination that I share.
Undeniably, it is an incredibly difficult reality to confront that the chances of securing a successful prosecution for a Troubles-related crime are negligible, because of the passage of time and the quality of evidence now available. Two-thirds of Troubles cases are more than 40 years old, and we have seen case after case collapse in recent years. Our Legacy Bill is a definitive move to a model that focusses primarily on information and reconciliation in recognition of that fact.
This legislation will help ensure that more victims and survivors – the overwhelming majority of whom are victims of terrorist violence – are able to obtain answers about those who caused them harm.
The Bill will establish a new independent commission for information recovery, the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery, with all the powers necessary to conduct robust, effective and thorough investigations into Troubles-related deaths and serious injuries. The powers will be supported by a legal requirement of full disclosure from Government departments, security services and agencies. If there are uncomfortable truths that come out about the conduct of the Government during the course of this process, then we will have to take responsibility for those. And others will also have to do the same.
In exchange for a truthful account, given to the best of their knowledge and belief, of their involvement in a Troubles-related death or serious injury, the new commission will be able to grant individuals immunity from prosecution. If terrorists do not comply or are not deemed to have cooperated or given a truthful account – and many feel bound by a ‘code of honour’ not to do so – then the result of the Commission’s investigations will be passed to prosecutors and those suspected of crimes will be pursued.
There will be nowhere to hide, no ‘letter of comfort’ to get them off the hook. I have made clear on the floor of the House that the scheme initiated by the Labour Government at the time for the so-called ‘on the runs’ has no legal basis and will not be able to be used to prevent prosecutions under this new process.
This new approach is the result of much debate and deliberation: we have taken the time to get this right. It reflects the hugely challenging compromises that have been made to support the peace process since 1998 by the British and Irish Governments. This includes the early release of prisoners, the process of secretly decommissioning weapons, and an effective amnesty for those who provide information to the Independent Commission for the Location of Victims’ Remains. While we believe that those decisions were right for the peace process, it is also true that the overall approach to legacy had not been adjusted to reflect those changes.
Michael McDowell, who served as the Irish Government’s Attorney General between 1999 and 2002, has himself outlined the ‘de facto moratorium on investigation and prosecution of IRA members’ that the Irish Government has implemented since 1998. While many may not be willing to confront this fact, we believe we must be honest about the reality of where we are, not where we wish we were.
There has been a huge imbalance in the focus of legacy investigations, which has resulted in faith in the criminal justice system in Northern Ireland becoming increasingly strained. Some estimates suggest that armed forces veterans are 50 times more likely to be prosecuted than those who were members of terrorist organisations.
Specialist law firms who campaign on legacy issues, funded primarily by legal aid, have been able to peddle false hope and profit from the pain of those seeking answers about what happened to their loved ones. Until now, the primary way to do that has been through protracted and adversarial legal processes that are delivering neither justice nor information in the overwhelming majority of cases.
This feeds a pernicious and distorted view of the past, promoted and peddled by those with a vested interest in presenting the British state as the aggressor, when the truth is that terrorist organisations were responsible for the vast majority of deaths in Northern Ireland.
We must halt the rewriting of history and set the events of the Troubles in their appropriate historical context. That is why the Bill will also set up a major new oral history initiative. It will be one of the most ambitious and comprehensive approaches to oral history that has been attempted, will draw on established international models, and will concentrate on collating lived experiences and testimony from those who want to share their stories.
We will also establish an expert-led memorialisation strategy that will lay the groundwork for new structures and initiatives to commemorate the events of the past in a way that is inclusive but also, crucially, fair and balanced.
I will also be commissioning an official history of the UK Government’s policy in Northern Ireland – conducted independently of the Government – which will also help to develop a clearer understanding of what happened during the Troubles.
Taken together, I believe this will represent a hugely significant step towards enabling lasting reconciliation for all of Northern Ireland’s people, but it will require honesty in confronting the painful reality of where we are and the many difficult compromises already made in the name of peace.
As the historic Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement approaches its 25th anniversary next year, now is the moment to move forward in finally dealing with the terrible legacy left by the Troubles. This legislation will be hugely challenging for many, but compassion and commitment to truth and accountability is the only way we can move forward in peace, bring understanding and reconciliation for the next generation and enable Northern Ireland society to look forwards, rather than continually backwards at its divisive past.