Blair '˜must tell MPs about new Libya claims'

The news comes as UK victims step up their campaign for compensation in line with that already paid out by Libya to US, French and German victims of Libyan-sponsored terror attacks.

MPs on the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee (NIAC) last year lashed successive UK governments for failing to fight for the victims – some of whom have taken their own lives as a result of trauma and poverty suffered as a result of IRA bomb attacks using Semtex supplied by the late Colonel Gaddafi.

Tony Blair controversially refused to appear before MPs on the NIAC to answer questions about the failure to pursue compensation for victims, instead making written submissions.

On June 12 the Libya Herald reported that the Faiez Serraj Presidency Council of Libya (PC) is firmly rejecting calls by British MPs for £10bn of Gaddafi-linked frozen assets in the UK to be tapped to compensate victims.

The paper said the Libyan government pointed out that “it considered that the matter of the IRA and the previous Qaddafi regime had been dealt with in the past and that the Libyan government had cooperated with Britain to end this matter and that the two states had commenced normalised relations after having been cut off for years. It was on the basis that the matter had been dealt with that Libya had carried out numerous large investments in Britain.”

The claim is one of a number of similar claims being made by the Libyan government in recent weeks.

The News Letter asked Mr Blair if he concurs with this Libyan version of events, which could have transpired during his controversial dealings with Col Gaddafi.

However, a spokeswoman responded by referring to the written submissions he made to MPs.

But lawyer Matt Jury of McCue and Partners, who is representing the victims, demanded transparency.

“Tony Blair has refused to answer new concerns, recently revealed by the Libyan government itself, that he agreed to exonerate Libya from compensating victims of Libya-IRA terrorism in return for trade deals with the UK,” he said.

“This is all the more reason that the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee should use its power to compel Mr Blair to appear before it to finally answer questions about his role, after he snubbed them by refusing to appear last year. The UK victims deserve to hear the truth.”