Victims give guarded welcome to Troubles ‘amnesty’ setback in Lords

By Mark Rainey
Published 27th Jun 2023, 16:10 BST
Updated 28th Jun 2023, 13:14 BST
Lord Murphy during the Lords debate on the Legacy BillLord Murphy during the Lords debate on the Legacy Bill
Lord Murphy during the Lords debate on the Legacy Bill
​A House of Lords’ vote to remove the prospect of Troubles crime amnesties from the new legacy legislation has been welcomed by victims’ groups.

​On Monday night, a narrow majority of peers backed a demand that the immunity from prosecution provision be removed from the NI Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill.

However, the UK Government later said it “remains determined” to push ahead with the controversial legislation.

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The move to ditch it was spearheaded by Labour former NI Secretary Lord Murphy of Torfaen, who pointed out the measure had been “almost universally condemned” in the region.

One element of the Bill would provide immunity for those accused of commiting serious offences, as long as they co-operate with a new truth recovery body (ICRIR).

Following the Lords’ vote (197 votes to 185), the WAVE Trauma Centre in Belfast tweeted: “It’s some consolation that the government’s cruel legacy bill has been dealt a blow by the Lords passing amendments removing the perpetrator supporting immunity clause & ensuring reviews are carried out to Op Kenova standards. The fight against this toxic legislation goes on.”

SEFF also posted a message in response to the Lords’ vote, saying: The @GOVUK would do well to discern between the key messages being given to them by members of the Upper House.

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“There is yet an opportunity to pull back from the brink... do not force innocent victims/survivors to be complicit with granting ‘conditional amnesty’ in the hope of getting some information (the veracity of which is unlikely to be proven)”.

Yesterday, a NIO spokesperson said: “The UK Government remains determined, through the… Bill, to deliver better outcomes for those most affected by the Troubles, and we maintain that this legislation is the best way of doing that.

“We acknowledge that this Bill contains uncomfortable and finely balanced choices, but we have to be realistic about what we can best deliver for families over a quarter-of-a-century after the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement.”

It is expected the government will restore an amended version of the amnesty clause before the Bill returns to the Lords.