Veterans branded a new Troubles deal between Britain and Ireland a 'betrayal' after it emerged it could pave the way for more soldiers who served in Northern Ireland to be hauled through the courts.
The new 'framework', announced at Hillsborough Castle, near Belfast, by Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn and Irish Tanaiste (deputy prime minister) Simon Harris, follows on from Labour's commitment to repeal the Conservatives' 2023 Legacy Act.
The Tories' legislation, introduced by then veterans' minister Johnny Mercer, halted scores of civil cases and inquests and offered conditional immunity for those accused of Troubles crimes in exchange for co-operation with a new truth recovery body. But it was declared unlawful by the High Court in Belfast, last November.
Former Lance Corporal Soldier F, currently on trial for his involvement in the notorious 1972 Bloody Sunday killings in Londonderry, was charged prior to the 2023 Act.
The agreement with the Irish government, following nine months of negotiations, ends immunity for terrorists – infamously offered by the Blair government to 187 pro-IRA figures – and puts in place six 'protections and rights' for veterans. But it ends their immunity, too.
