Mixed reaction to UK-Ireland deal on addressing cases | UK News

Victims’ families, campaigners and politicians have given a mixed response to a new framework aimed at addressing Northern Ireland Troubles legacy cases.

The new deal, announced by Tánaiste (Irish deputy prime minister) Simon Harris and Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn on Friday, reforms the controversial Legacy Act.

It includes a new legacy commission, a dedicated legacy unit within An Garda Síochána (the Irish police force) being established, as well as a package of protections for veterans.

While both governments said the plan aims to deliver truth, reconciliation and protections, many families of those killed during the conflict and some politicians have expressed scepticism.

Margaret McGuinness was 13 when her father, Peter, was killed by a plastic bullet fired by security forces during a riot in Belfast in 1981.

Left with five children at 37, her mother struggled in the aftermath, and Margaret said she was forced to grow up quickly.

Ms McGuinness said she now wants an independent investigation into her father’s death, not to see anyone convicted, but simply to learn the truth.

While she hopes the new legacy framework will deliver answers, she remains doubtful.

“Will we get our independent investigations? Will we be told the truth? I don’t think so. I hope I’m wrong,” she said.

Acknowledging that there had been suffering on all sides, she added that families ultimately “just want to be told the truth and for people to be left in peace.”

Shane Laverty, whose brother Robert, an RUC officer, was killed by the IRA in 1972, said he wanted “truth and honesty” from the process.

Victims’ campaigner Jude Whyte, whose mother was killed in a UVF bombing in 1984, said it “remains to be seen” whether families would accept the new body.

“Politicians can’t get us out of this mire,” she added.

“The people who live in this part of the world have to make a decision … I want to leave something other than poison and hatred behind.”

Emmett McConomy, whose 11-year-old brother Stephen was shot dead by a soldier in Derry in 1982, said he hoped the deal was “a step in the right direction” but warned it could fail without meaningful consultation.

“Without proper buy-in from victims, this could sadly be doomed to fail,” he told Radio Foyle’s North West Today.

Kenny Donaldson of the South East Fermanagh Foundation (SEFF), which supports victims and survivors, said “substantive work” seemed to have been done to “quell some of the significant concerns people had around independence and oversight… on the UK side of things”, but insisted progress would depend on a “full and committed effort” by both governments.

David Crabbe, a former soldier who served for 30 years in Northern Ireland, said he welcomes any progress on the legacy process but called for fairness.

He argued that inquiries have focused heavily on the actions of soldiers and police, while less has been spent investigating those who killed security forces, which he believes skews the narrative of the conflict.

He added that if individuals crossed the criminal threshold, “they should face the law,” as security forces “stood for law and order”.

He gave a cautious welcome to the new legacy framework, praising the Irish government for “stepping up to the plate,” but acknowledged that while progress is welcome, the process will never be perfect.

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said her party would scrutinise the details in the coming days but it must be “victim-centred” and human rights compliant.

She stressed that some of the documents were still coming across the party’s desks but said victims’ reaction to the deal would be essential to its success or failure.

“If it doesn’t meet the tests set by them then it’s going to fall flat,” she said.

McDonald told reporters that legislation to implement the deal would be the “litmus test as to the seriousness of the British government when it says that it wishes to bring all of this to a successful conclusion”.

Sinn Féin Vice President Michelle O’Neill agreed, saying it was “hard to pass judgement” until their party sees the legislation “in black and white”.

McDonald added that the “British state and its agencies have sought to pull a veil over collusion”, and she insisted: “There cannot be hiding places given to anyone”.

DUP leader Gavin Robinson said the new proposals require “serious examination” and criticised the lack of prior consultation with victims and veterans.

He accused the Irish government of failing for 25 years to provide answers to victims’ families and warned that for many, the proposals may be “too little, too late.”

He also highlighted that families of Omagh bombing victims are still being denied a parallel inquiry in the Republic of Ireland.

His party colleague Carla Lockhart has said Friday’s announcement has caused “great hurt and angst” among Troubles victims.

“I think today has been very traumatic and has retraumatised many victims,” she said.

“They have watched as our UK government has stood side-by-side with a co-designed framework with the Irish government – that has caused great hurt and great angst amongst our innocent victims.”

She said this is because the Irish government has “refused” for many years to co-operate in evidence sharing.

Lockhart also said it was “utterly outrageous” that such a “significant announcement” was being made while Westminster was in recess.

“There is so little ability to scrutinise, to question, even at this early stage before the legislation comes before us,” the MP added.

Alliance MP Sorcha Eastwood welcomed the dual-government approach but stressed that victims “must remain at the centre of this process.”

The governments said the framework delivers on commitments made in the 2014 Stormont House Agreement and pledged to ring-fence €25m to support victims’ participation.

Traditional Unionist Voice leader Jim Allister said it is “an obscenity” to allow the Irish government to co-design legacy proposals.

“An obscenity which makes unionist buy-in impossible,” he said in a statement.

The UK government “has failed innocent victims to prioritise placating Dublin”, the MP added.

“I could not recommend any innocent victim to give this sham any credibility by participating in it. Other unionist leaders should equally stand strong against this betrayal.”

SDLP leader Claire Hanna MP said the legacy deal showed “some progress” but warned it risked falling short for victims.

“We have serious concerns that what is being brought forward will fall short in meeting the needs of victims and their families,” Hanna said.

“We are running out of opportunities to address the past and we cannot afford another false dawn.”

She welcomed the Irish government’s commitment to address legacy but criticised the closure of inquests and a lack of clarity on disclosure from paramilitary groups.

Hanna said secrecy had long obstructed truth recovery and stressed that both governments must build a framework that delivers comfort to victims and supports reconciliation.

In a joint statement, the US ambassadors to the UK and the Republic of Ireland welcomed the new UK–Ireland framework on Troubles legacy issues, highlighting the importance of bilateral co-operation as a cornerstone of political stability under the Good Friday Agreement.

Both the US Ambassador to the United Kingdom, ambassador Warren Stephens, ambassador to the Republic of Ireland, Edward Walsh, said they hope the measures will “continue to promote healing and reconciliation” in Northern Ireland.

Church leaders in Ireland, including the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland, John McDowell, and the head of the Catholic Church in Ireland, Archbishop Eamon Martin, have also welcomed the publication of the framework.

“We urge that the framework documents be closely considered by all who have an interest in how justice and truth can best be served,” they said.

“Above all, we owe it to the victims and survivors to ensure that their needs are met with compassion and thoroughness.”

Police Service of Northern Ireland [PSNI] Chief Constable Jon Boutcher said he welcomes progress on legacy.

He also acknowledged “the hurt and suffering felt by families of those murdered during the Troubles”.

However, he added that the cost of dealing with legacy comes out of the “core budget which should be spent on policing in Northern Ireland”.

The chief constable has been vocal about the need for more funding in all areas of policing.

“We are not funded for all aspects of legacy costs and each day the PSNI buckles a little more as we desperately try to manage the unique challenges of policing a post-conflict society with wholly inadequate funding.”