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Assembly Elections
2. Bob Spink (Castle Point): If he will make a statement on the political negotiations relating to elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly. [134144]
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (Mr. Paul Murphy): As I said in response to my hon. Friend the Member for Broxtowe (Dr. Palmer), there have been significant developments in the peace process. We announced last week that elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly will be held on Wednesday 26 November.
Bob Spink : But central to the negotiations and elections must be genuine decommissioning, truth, honesty and lack of deception. Will the Secretary of State therefore cut the spin and tell the House who was telling the truth—the Prime Minister or General de Chastelain?
Mr. Murphy: I dealt with those issues earlier and the Minister of State, Northern Ireland Office, my right hon. Friend the Member for Liverpool, Wavertree tackled them earlier this week. However, I repeat that the issues before the people of Northern Ireland are the elections and the future afterwards. I only wish the Conservative party understood that. The problem is that it does not. In the months and years that have gone by, the lack of a bipartisan policy on Northern Ireland has not helped but hindered the peace process.
Mr. Seamus Mallon (Newry and Armagh): Does the Secretary of State agree that one of the major problems with the election is that the electorate know that they are not the final arbiters? They know full well that whatever they decide on 26 November and whatever the political parties decide subsequently, both outcomes have to receive the imprimatur of the Ulster Unionist council and the IRA army council. Will the Secretary of State assure the House that the two Governments will take steps to ensure that we are not in hock for ever to those two groups and that we will not have our futures decided by the men in balaclavas and the men in bowler hats?
Mr. Murphy: There is no answer to that really, is there? I know that my hon. Friend feels strongly about inclusivity in the discussions and the peace process, and I know that the Social Democratic and Labour party in particular, but other parties too, have been disappointed in the past few weeks. I am sure that he agrees that we must continue to tackle the issues that were central to the parties' discussions in those weeks and ensure that there is trust and confidence between the parties. I believe that the review of the agreement after the elections will provide the basis for inclusivity and the involvement of all parties. Of course, we await the outcome of the elections, but I want to re-emphasise the importance of the SDLP to the process, especially with regard to policing in Northern Ireland.
Lembit Öpik (Montgomeryshire): At one point in the negotiations, the Prime Minister said that if we all knew what he knew, we would all sign up to the process. Subsequently, Downing street itself demoted the Prime Minister's knowledge to an informed guess. The crucial
question is whether the Prime Minister had insider knowledge. If so, where did he get it? Will the Secretary of State assure us that in future all the pro-agreement parties such as the SDLP and the Alliance party will not be excluded from the negotiations? I firmly believe that their inclusion would have avoided the difficulties that we observed last week.
Mr. Murphy: I do not know what would have happened; no one does. However, we have to try and try again in Northern Ireland. If we fail on one occasion, we must pick up the pieces and start all over again. I disagree with the hon. Gentleman about what constitutes the central question, which is ensuring that the elections are held and that we move to period of stability in Northern Ireland in which we can resolve the difficulties and have an Executive up and running.
Mr. Kevin McNamara (Hull, North): If it is a question of trust, is it not a question of trust in the judgment of General de Chastelain? Is it not a fact that one party refuses to accept the judgment of the independent arms decommissioning commissioner and that as long as it continues to do that, we shall never have the solution that we want and will always be in hock to the official Unionists?
Mr. Murphy: I think that everybody in the House believes that the integrity of General de Chastelain is unquestioned, and that what he reported at the press conference and in his own report to me and to the Justice Minister in Ireland were significant improvements in what has occurred. Clearly, they were not sufficient to produce the trust and confidence that was required between the parties. I hope that that trust and confidence will be restored when we return after the elections.
Mr. John Taylor (Solihull): Can the Secretary of State confirm that the review provided for in the Belfast agreement will take place on the due date, namely 2 December?
Mr. Murphy: I cannot confirm the precise date, but I can tell the hon. Gentleman that the review will be held before the year is out. It has to start before then. It may well be on 2 December, but we do not know what is going to happen on 26 November in terms of the outcome of the elections. The hon. Gentleman and I will agree, however, that the review must start after the elections and before the year is finished.
Traffic Surveillance
4. Patrick Mercer (Newark): What plans he has to increase security surveillance of traffic through the Province's (a) ports and (b) airports. [134146]
The Minister of State, Northern Ireland Office (Jane Kennedy): Security at ports and airports throughout Northern Ireland is kept under continual review involving a multi-agency approach. I cannot disclose
specific details in relation to security changes, as to do so could compromise the effectiveness of measures put in place.
Patrick Mercer : Hon. Members on both sides of the House will welcome the lessening of tension and violence in Northern Ireland, but will the Minister assure me that, as terrorists continue to target ports and airports, surveillance will increase—whatever political signal that sends—and that the Government will not allow their guard to drop?
Jane Kennedy: I can give the hon. Gentleman that assurance. The Government are serious about protecting our borders and doing all that we can to prevent terrorist attacks from whatever source.
Andrew Mackinlay (Thurrock): Will the Minister meet the representative body of the Northern Ireland airport police, so that it can explain to her the undertakings given in the House by Sir Patrick Mayhew and in a published letter to the hon. Member for Rochford and Southend, East (Sir Teddy Taylor) at the time of the privatisation of the international airport, bearing in mind that it is the intention of the privatised management to cut the number of police officers there by 15? Will the Minister ensure that those officers have their day in court with her, so that they can explain their deep concerns?
Jane Kennedy: I pay tribute to my hon. Friend for the determination with which he has pursued the case being made by the police officers to whom he refers. I can assure him that I would be happy to meet a delegation, if he wishes to bring that forward.
Mr. Roy Beggs (East Antrim): Is the Minister satisfied that security surveillance at ports and airports in the Irish Republic and Northern Ireland is adequate to ensure that there is no back-door illegal entry from the Irish Republic to the United Kingdom? Has she any plans to formalise the arrangements in respect of the common travel area between the United Kingdom and the Irish Republic?
Jane Kennedy: I am satisfied that the enhancements that are being made at Belfast city airport are adequate and appropriate to the task. The hon. Gentleman's point about cross-border vigilance and co-operation is one that I will look at. I am satisfied that the co-operation that already exists between Customs, immigration officers and the police forces in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland is excellent. That co-operation is continuing, and we keep it under constant review.
Decommissioning
5. Mr. John Robertson (Glasgow, Anniesland): What progress has been made by the Independent Monitoring Commission towards verifying decommissioning by paramilitary organisations in Northern Ireland. [134147]
The Minister of State, Northern Ireland Office (Jane Kennedy): While the verification of the decommissioning of paramilitary weapons is a matter for the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning, the Independent Monitoring Commission, currently existing in shadow form, will in due course monitor paramilitary activity, normalisation and allegations of political breach. It will do so with a view to maintaining the trust and confidence necessary for the conduct of stable and inclusive devolved government in Northern Ireland.
John Robertson: Does my right hon. Friend agree that, despite the setbacks in decommissioning, the work that has been done in Northern Ireland should be welcomed by hon. Members on both sides of the House? Does she also agree that there is still more to be done?
Jane Kennedy: I am happy to agree with both my hon. Friend's points. Clearly, the outcome of last Tuesday's discussions was disappointing, in that the considerable progress that has been made on decommissioning was not enough to restore the full confidence and trust necessary to go forward in a positive atmosphere into an election to bring about the restoration of an Executive Government.
Mr. Douglas Hogg (Sleaford and North Hykeham): Does the Minister accept that it would be helpful if we knew how much of the weapons and explosives had been destroyed and how much remained? Is that not essential to determine the parties' good faith? [Interruption.]
Mr. Speaker: Order. It is far too noisy in the Chamber.
Jane Kennedy: I largely agree with the right hon. and learned Gentleman. We have not yet achieved the confidence necessary to secure a political advance. For that, we need agreement on the transparency to be attached to acts of decommissioning in terms of the arms dealt with and how long it will take to complete the process.
Mr. Eddie McGrady (South Down): Does the Minister agree that it is significant that there has been no major arms discovery in Northern Ireland during the period in which the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning has been acting? Is there any relationship between the absence of such a discovery and the continuation of the commission? Is it not surprising that General de Chastelain seems to have been held captive until the announcement was made about the election? Was the ploy to get the elections without the proper sequence agreed by the parties?
Jane Kennedy: The House should reflect that last week's statements by the leader of Sinn Fein and by the IRA were major steps forward and confirmed their commitment to exclusively peaceful and democratic means. The act of decommissioning that was overseen by the IICD was also welcome. Unfortunately, as both my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and I have now made clear, it did not achieve the level of public
confidence that is necessary to go forward to an election with the confidence that an Executive would be achieved as a result of the election.
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