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The Northern Ireland Secretary has initiated the official process of repealing the controversial Legacy Act, which was introduced by the Conservative government. The Act had banned inquests and civil actions related to incidents during the Troubles and included a conditional amnesty for people suspected of Troubles-related crimes in exchange for co-operating with a new information recovery body. Victims’ groups and all the main political parties in Northern Ireland had opposed the Act. Labour had promised to repeal it if they won the general election in July.
Hilary Benn, speaking in the House of Commons, announced that he was laying a “remedial order” to formally remove the conditional immunity clause from the Act and lift the ban on new civil actions. He also said that he would introduce legislation that would lift the ban on inquests. Benn outlined further changes to reform and strengthen the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery (ICRIR), while enabling it to continue working on behalf of the growing number of families who have already sought its help.
DUP MP Sammy Wilson criticised Benn’s decisions on inquests and civil cases, saying that they would “not result in terrorists being taken through the courts,” but “drag aging members of the security forces through the courts and suffer as a result of the service they gave in Northern Ireland.” Sinn Féin MP John Finucane said Benn’s announcement fell short of Labour’s manifesto commitment to “repeal and replace” the Act. SDLP MP Claire Hanna MP said her party welcomed Benn’s statement, but warned that failing to deal with the past properly limits the ability to have a different and shared future.
The Legacy Act was the government’s controversial attempt to “draw a line” under the Troubles in Northern Ireland. It was first proposed by then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson in 2021 as a solution to ending “vexatious prosecutions” of former soldiers, and passed into law in 2023. It created the ICRIR to take over all Troubles-era cases from 1 May 2024, including those on the desk of the Police Service of Northern Ireland, and shut down all historical inquests. The Act’s offer of conditional immunity to suspects has been disapplied following legal action by bereaved families
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