Sir Declan Morgan’s analysis of politics of legacy and reconciliation questioned by victims campaigner

Of the controversial Legacy Bill which could give immunity from prosecution to former terrorists who co-operated with the ICRIR, the retired judge said: "Once you get past the door of immunity and start to look at what is in the legislation, it is extraordinarily open in terms of how you are going to deliver the things like the information recovery and look at the issue of reconciliation.”

SEFF Director Kenny Donaldson said: "Sir Declan Morgan is someone who is regarded as a fine mind of the law, in achieving the office of Lord Chief Justice, this would have to be the case.

"However, we would question his analysis of the politics of legacy and also the understanding advanced around the issue of reconciliation.

"Firstly, the proposed legacy institutions contained within the Stormont House Agreement (SHA) were not agreed by all five main political parties and that is a matter of public record, that myth really needs to stop being peddled.

"But critically, the political discussions held around legacy which formed the basis of SHA occurred in locked away rooms at Parliament Buildings and/or within other offices in the Stormont estate, there was no engagement with the main stakeholders in all of this – victims and survivors and their respective groups.

"The IVU (Innocent Victims United) constituency of groups are by far the largest stakeholder of directly impacted victims and survivors of The Troubles and we did not support the Stormont House Dis-Agreement. We put forward alternative proposals and indicated a willingness to meaningfully engage with others on these issues, but there was an absence of humility around the need to do so, and for many years there has been paralysis until the UK Government's position statement of March 2020.”

He added: "Our constituency doesn't do blackmail. Some have tried to convince us that we must accept the current Bill in order to block off those seeking to hold the UK state and its agencies accountable.

"Because our state has to date adopted a position where it has refused to pursue terrorism does not mean that we will acquiesce in absolute blocking of justice pathways for others across the board. The UK Government needs to urgently reset its position on these matters.

"To Sir Declan and all others be clear of the following – reconciliation cannot and will not ever happen within this society unless and until there is a willingness on the part of perpetrators to own their actions and to accept the truth that whatever of the grievances they held or hold – whether real or perceived – that this never justifies the taking of human life in the advancement or defence of a political objective".

"Enough of the phoney peace and reconciliation process that we have been treated to, the time is now to seize a new future for our people, and courage and humility are required in bucketfuls by all concerned, and that includes the Irish state who were and are a participant in all of this.”