Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill “My Government will prioritise support for the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement and its institutions, including through legislation to address the legacy of the past.” The purpose of the Bill is to: ● Fulfil the manifesto commitment to address the legacy of Northern Ireland’s past by providing better outcomes for victims, survivors and their families, giving veterans the protections they deserve and focusing on information recovery and reconciliation. The main benefits of the Bill would be: ●
Helping individuals and communities look to the future rather than the past, by recovering and providing as much information as possible to people about Troubles-related deaths and serious injuries.
● Reforming the current system for dealing with the legacy of the Troubles, moving away from a focus on criminal justice outcomes and ending the cycle of investigations that has failed both victims and veterans. ● Aiding wider social reconciliation to further mutual understanding in both the short and long term, including by establishing a major oral history initiative that provides an opportunity for people from all backgrounds to share their experiences and perspectives related to the Troubles. The main elements of the Bill are: ●
Establishing a new Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery to enable individuals and family members to seek and receive information about Troubles-related deaths and serious injuries, and to produce an historical record of what is known in relation to every death that occurred during the Troubles.
● Providing for how individuals can secure immunity from prosecution. In July 2021 the Government set out proposals to provide immunity from any prosecution for future Troubles-related offences. The Government has listened carefully to a range of views on the original proposal and it is clear that a model where immunity is only provided to individuals who cooperate with the new Commission provides the best route to give victims and their families the answers they have sought for years as well as giving our veterans the certainty they deserve. This still leaves open the route of prosecution if individuals are not deemed to have earned their immunity.
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