DUP throws weight behind victims’ legacy proposals

The DUP MP said the new document – produced by the umbrella group Innocent Victims United (IVU) – was worthy of “serious consideration” by the government, and that any new mechanisms for dealing with the past must have the confidence of innocent victims.

Launched on Monday, the IVU draft document states that, in keeping with the “constitutional principles” of the United Kingdom, any new body investigations Troubles-era fatalities must not then adjudicate on its own findings.

It also proposes that all historic investigations are carried out by an enhanced Legacy Investigations Branch (LIB) of the PSNI – overseen by both the NI Policing Board and a new, independent judge-led oversight panel.

Another suggestion is that any reinvestigation is only carried out when “there is credible new evidence relating to a death that is capable of leading to the identification and prosecution of a person for a criminal offence related to the death”.

Sir Jeffrey said: “For too long legacy has been imbalanced. From the release of prisoners to the on-the-run letters, too much has been about the perpetrator rather than the victim.

“We welcome the proposals put forward by IVU. The DUP Parliamentary team will be hosting a video conference with the secretary of state tomorrow to consider the NIO legacy proposals. We will be urging him to seriously consider the IVU blueprint, which in principle we could certainly work with. It is vital that any revised proposals have the confidence of innocent victims.”

Sir Jeffrey added: “We are not wedded to any option on dealing with the past but we are crystal clear that victims must always have access to justice and the vexatious claims against those who stood up for law and order in the Troubles must end.

“Elderly police officers and soldiers who have already been investigated should not be dragged before the courts without any new and compelling evidence. We must remember that 90% of the deaths in the Troubles were by terrorists.”

The DUP response is significant because in recent years the party has rarely criticised the Stormont House (SHA) legacy proposals. Ulster Unionist politicians were fierce critics of the SHA plan and were among the contributors to the News Letter’s 2018 Stop the Legacy Scandal series of essays.

Also welcoming the IVU proposals, UUP MLA Doug Beattie said: “The Ulster Unionist Party has consistently highlighted the major flaws in the Stormont House Agreement legacy arrangements and we have urged the government to take decisive action to radically alter its approach.

“We welcome the proposals put forward today by Innocent Victims United, and we urge the government to pay them close attention so that they can inform thinking as we move forward.”

Mr Beattie said the IVU voices must be heard and taken seriously by government bodies.

“In particular, the Ulster Unionist Party supports IVU in their opposition to any form of amnesty for Troubles-era crimes, and that the Legacy Investigation Branch (LIB) should be enhanced and carry out all historic investigations. We also remain concerned that those injured during the Troubles, the limbless, blind, burned and psychologically damaged, have been forgotten by the government and the majority of political parties.”

Mr Beattie added: “We look forward to engaging with the government to ensure that whatever legacy arrangements are ultimately put in place will deliver the fair, balanced, and proportionate system that the people of Northern Ireland, and those who defended them, deserve.”

TUV leader Jim Allister said IVU deserved praise for such “practical alternatives” to the SHA proposals “which were an evident vehicle to vilify the State and rewrite history”.

He said: “With fast diminishing support from within unionism and the innocent victims’ sector for the SHA plans, which even HM Government seems to be recognising, it is timely and important that meaningful proposals have been tabled on behalf of innocent victims.

“The investigatory focus must not be lost or blurred if any innocent victim is ever to attain justice. Hence, the wisdom of retaining such within the ambit of the PSNI.”

Mr Allister said he looked forward to the IVU proposals being taken seriously and “the building of a unified platform to promote them”.

At Westminster last November, NI Police Federation chairman Mark Lindsay told MPs the government’s Legacy Bill was “perverse” because it “sought to equate the actions of murderers and bombers with the actions of those who worked tirelessly and courageously to bring them to justice”.