The UK and Irish governments have agreed a new framework to address the legacy of the Northern Ireland Troubles.
The framework, announced by Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn and the Irish deputy prime minister, Simon Harris, at Hillsborough Castle on Friday, replaces the controversial Legacy Act, introduced by the Conservative government.
“I believe that this framework, underpinned by new co-operation from both our governments, represents the best way forward to finally make progress on the unfinished business of the Good Friday Agreement,” said Mr Benn.
He added that it would allow the families of victims killed during violence in Northern Ireland between the 1960s and 1990s, to “find the answers they have long been seeking”.
The proposed framework includes a dedicated Legacy Commission to investigate deaths during the Troubles, a resumption of inquests regarding cases from the conflict which were halted by the Legacy Act.
There will also be a separate truth recovery mechanism, the Independent Commission on Information Retrieval, jointly funded by London and Dublin.
“Dealing with the legacy of the Troubles is hard, and that is why it has been for so long the unfinished business of the Good Friday Agreement,” said Mr Benn.
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Mr Harris described the framework as a “night and day improvement” on the previous act. Scrapping the Legacy Act, introduced in 2023, was a Labour government pledge.
What this means
A section of the Legacy Act offered immunity from prosecution for ex-soldiers and militants who cooperate with a new investigative body. This provision was ruled incompatible with human rights law.
The 2023 law was opposed by all political parties in Northern Ireland, including pro-British and Irish nationalist groups.
The Irish government, which brought a legal challenge against Britain at the European Court of Human Rights, also opposed it.
Both governments said the new plans will ensure it is possible to refer cases for potential prosecutions.
It will ‘take time’ to win families’ confidence
Irish Foreign Minister, Simon Harris, said in a statement that the framework could deliver on Ireland’s two tests of being human rights-compliant and securing the support of victims’ families, if implemented in good faith.
He added that winning the confidence of victims’ families would take time.
Dublin will revisit its legal challenge against Britain if the tests are met, it said.
Restoring strained relations
The UK’s Labour government had sought to reset relations with Ireland, after they were damaged by the process of Britain leaving the European Union.
The Conservative government had defended its previous approach, arguing prosecutions were unlikely to lead to convictions, and that it wanted to draw a line under the conflict.
A number of trials have collapsed in recent years, but the first former British soldier to be convicted of an offence since the peace deal was given a suspended sentenced in 2023.
