Submission by The Rt Hon Shaun Woodward MP, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland

 

 

 

I am writing in response to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee's report on the Consultative Group on the Past's proposals, published on the 16^th December. My apologies for the delay in replying to the Committee.

 

I am very grateful for the very careful and thoughtful way in which the Committee has considered the issues raised by Lord Eames and Denis Bradley and their colleagues. Finding a way of dealing with Northern Ireland's past in a way that promotes reconciliation is I believe vital to enabling Northern Ireland society to move forward to a shared future. I share the Committee's view that these are important and complex issues which need to be looked at in the round.

 

Clearly central to considering how best to move forward will be Lord Saville's Report on the Bloody Sunday Inquiry. As I have long stated, the publication of this Report and its conclusions will be a defining and also critical moment, and the Government will need to formulate a fully considered response, setting out a process to deal with the outstanding issues from the past.

 

It is therefore prudent I should wait for the Tribunal's Report before responding to the specific proposals of the Consultative Group on the Past and to the views that have been expressed through the consultation process that the Government launched last year.

 

 

 

Also relevant will be the Chief Constable's conclusions on his review of the work of the Historical Enquiries Team. I expect to receive his review shortly.

 

I hope the Committee will understand why I have been cautious in responding to the detailed conclusions, and the Committee should anticipate the appropriate response once Lord Saville's Report is published.

 

I look forward to meeting the Committee again on Wednesday.

 

 

26 February 2010