Legacy inquests planning to proceed until ‘certainty’ that cases will be halted

The judge is carrying out a review of inquests into a number of deaths between the 1970s and the 2000s for which a coroner has not yet been appointed. However, the hearing is taking place against the backdrop of the passage through Parliament of controversial legislation aimed at addressing the legacy of Northern Ireland's Troubles, which is expected to become law next month.

The Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill would halt future civil cases and inquests linked to killings during the conflict. A recent amendment introduced by the Government further stated that ongoing inquests, other than those at the point of verdict, will cease on May 1 2024. Among the cases reviewed by Mr Justice Humphreys on Friday at the Royal Courts of Justice was the death of former loyalist leader Richard Jameson, who was killed in a loyalist feud in 2000.

Also reviewed was the inquest into the deaths of mother-of-three Elizabeth McDonald and John Gerald McGleenan, who were killed when a no-warning loyalist bomb detonated outside the Step Inn pub in Keady, Co Armagh, in 1976. That incident has been blamed on the notorious UVF Glennane Gang which was responsible for a sectarian murder campaign in the mid-1970s which is believed to have resulted in up to 120 deaths.

During the hearing, Mr Justice Humphreys referenced the Government legislation which returned to the House of Lords this week. He said: "There is no Act of Parliament and until there is, it would be wrong of us to act in any particular fashion. "I have read the most recent report stage in the House of Lords and clearly there is an amendment proposed which would remove the proposed Clause 40 from the Bill.

"As we stand there is to be further parliamentary debate on whether or not the legacy inquest process is to come to a halt, and if so, by what means and when. "I think all those issues remain alive."

He added: "We may have resolution of that in parliamentary terms quite soon. It looks to me as if there is another debate next week and then in early July it will return to the Commons. "These things ought to be clearer in the very near future. "It may well be that once the legislation is on the statute books that we will have to take a look again at some of these cases, but until then I think we proceed on the basis that we have done in the past five years and proceed (on the basis) that these inquests are going to take place and see how best we can case-manage them.

"It is an important context but until certainty is achieved I think we all have to proceed as we were."

Mr Justice Humphreys told the court that he would not give any firm direction on the timescale for any of the 13 separate inquests he was scheduled to review on Friday and would come back to court on a future date.