Campbell disappointed over Clegg's response
DEPUTY prime minister Nick Clegg failed to back a call for deputy first minister Martin McGuinness, the Roman Catholic Church and former IRA members to "declare all that they know" about the 1972 Claudy bombs.
East Londonderry MP Gregory Campbell made the appeal during Prime Minister's Questions just hours after Mr McGuinness confirmed he had met with the priest suspected of the bombing – Father James Chesney – shortly before he died.
Later, Mr Campbell said he was "disappointed in the fact that the deputy prime minister did not appear to be properly briefed regarding the possibility of the Claudy question".
Mr Clegg was standing in for David Cameron who had been excused from the session because of the ill health of his father. Ian Cameron later died after suffering a stroke while on holiday in France.
Mr Campbell vowed to take the matter up with the prime minister at a later date.
Speaking earlier to a packed house, Mr Campbell said the Police Ombudsman's report – published last month – into the IRA atrocity "concluded that the secretary of state at the time, a police officer and a Roman Catholic cardinal colluded to ensure that a chief suspect in the bombing, who was also a Roman Catholic priest, transferred to the Irish Republic rather than be brought to justice".
Mr Campbell added: "But will the deputy prime minister join with me in calling for the Catholic Church to apologise for their part in this, the surviving members of the Provisional IRA, including the deputy first minister who I understand today confirmed that he visited the suspect priest as he lay on his death bed 30 years ago, to declare all that they knew about one of the worst atrocities in Northern Ireland's troubled past."
Failing to address the question in his response, Mr Clegg said the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Owen Patterson, made "a full apology on the 24th of August on behalf of the government".
"The government is profoundly, profoundly sorry that Fr Chesney was not properly investigated for his suspected involvement in this hideous crime at the time and that the victims and their families have been, quite simply, denied justice.
"But I do also want to reiterate that, although after the attack the government acted wrongly in not insisting that the RUC properly investigated Fr Chesney, it was terrorists who were responsible for this despicable and evil attack which took innocent lives, including that of an eight-year-old girl.
"My right honourable friend has made clear that a public inquiry is not being considered on the grounds that there is not likely to be any further evidence at all to consider."
See Morning View, page 18
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Wednesday 15 February 2012
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