Editorial: ​Suing hypocritical Ireland on legacy should just be start

​It is almost two years since Dublin launched its legal action against the UK over the (now shelved) Legacy Act.​It was breathtaking Irish hypocrisy, yet the unionist and UK government reaction to it has been insipid. Ireland was objecting to London’s plan for a conditional amnesty, which was almost beyond parody given that the Republic has pursued an undeclared amnesty for IRA leaders since the 1994 ceasefire. At every stage of the political process, if weak UK ministers dared get tough with Sinn Fein over tardy decommissioning and terror outrages like the Northern Bank robbery, Irish officials jumped in to demand that republicans suffer no sanction.

When Ireland launched its interstate action in 2023 Doug Beattie, then Ulster Unionist leader, described the move as “not surprising”. His underwhelming statement calling on Ireland to accept its responsibilities on legacy was disappointing given that the UUP had led the charge against the 2014 Stormont House deal on legacy, saying it would worsen the imbalance against state forces.

The last Tory government’s reaction to the Irish case was poor. It wrote letters demanding information on Ireland’s own legacy probes, it was cool towards Irish leaders, etc. But the case should have met immediate retaliation, starting with a unilateral inquiry into Irish extradition refusals in the Troubles, and all the IRA murders thus made easier.

Keir Starmer and Hilary Benn just gush about Irish ministers and are seeking a legacy deal with them (ie appease them to drop the case). It is good to see Mr Beattie return to form on legacy when he calls on the UK to bring “an interstate case against the Irish government to [Strasbourg], highlighting their failure to address legacy.”

Such a case should only be the start of a wider fightback against the pro-terror direction of legacy, with unionist leaders stating they will reject any coming rollover to Dublin.