2026-03-19

4. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if he will establish a historical investigations unit, as proposed by the Irish Council for Civil Liberties and the Committee on the Administration of Justice, to allow for independent police investigations into unresolved deaths and incidents of torture or ill-treatment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20734/26]

I am sure the Minister's office is even more inundated than mine in respect of this matter. Anybody who has ever been a member of the justice committee will have dealt with a huge number of outstanding legacy issues relating to the ongoing legacy of the Garda heavy gang, unresolved cases relating to the conflict and other historical investigative failures. How we have dealt with those matters has been a matter of much debate. The Irish Council for Civil Liberties and the Committee for the Administration of Justice proposed the establishment of a historical inquiries unit. That proposal merits consideration. Is the Minister considering the establishment of such a unit?

We need to be balanced about this matter. Obviously, there are legacy issues arising from the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The Deputy mentioned the Garda heavy gang. We also have to acknowledge that murders carried out by the Provisional IRA give rise to legacy issues that need to be resolved. One of the inadequacies of the Good Friday Agreement is that it does not really deal with legacy issues at all. Governments have been grappling with this matter since then. Regrettably, and this applies in many instances, legacy is being used as a political tool. However, we do have to try to deal with legacy issues. Where there are historical offences, it is important that we try to resolve them. It is important to say that there is no de facto moratorium or amnesty in this jurisdiction in respect of any murders or serious criminal activities that took place during the Troubles in Northern Ireland. That does not happen. There are many serious events that occurred that have still not been resolved. People have not got justice in respect of them. From speaking to An Garda Síochána and officials within my Department, I know that the relevant files remain open. There has been progress recently. The framework agreement between the two Governments has given rise to a commitment that there a statutory regime to deal with Troubles-related killings, as they are referred to, or incidents will be put in place. That legislation, as the Deputy knows, is going through the Houses of Parliament in the UK. In May, I will bring forward a general scheme to Government in respect of corresponding inquiries here. The Garda Commissioner established a Troubles legacy liaison unit at the beginning of the year. That is an important development.

Of course, there are a range of historical cases. I am talking about cases in this State in respect of which justice and accountability have not been delivered. There are well-known cases of collusion and cases relating to the legacy of the conflict. The actions of the Garda heavy gang need to be addressed, particularly as those involved were central to a number of miscarriages of justice. The 50th anniversary of the Sallins case is approaching. There was no accountability for the actions of the gardaí involved in those events. The Kerry babies case is an outstanding area of concern. Little or nothing has been done regarding a number of conflict-related events, including the killing of Eddie Fullerton, the Dublin Airport bombing, the Dublin-Monaghan bombings and the case of John Francis Green in my constituency. All of these cases cast a shadow in terms accountability and give rise to an ongoing burden for the families involved. The Irish Government has supported the establishment of an historical inquiries unit in the North. Why will it not do the same in this State?

The Deputy has fallen into the trap that I identified earlier. It is difficult not to do that. He stated that the actions of the Garda heavy gang need to be addressed. The murders carried out by the Provisional IRA also need to be addressed. The Deputy referred to Eddie Fullerton, a Sinn Féin councillor who was brutally murdered. The murder of Billy Fox, a Member of these Houses, needs to be addressed. The murder of Robert Bradford needs to be addressed. We cannot be selective about which atrocity we want to focus upon. That is why the legacy framework that has been agreed to by both Governments is welcome. The Deputy mentioned the Sallins train robbery. I have already given a response on that matter. I am not going to have a public inquiry in respect of it. If it comes within the parameters of the legacy issues in due course, so be it. The issue in that regard relates to a robbery occurred 50 years ago. Two people had their convictions overturned in 1980. A presidential pardon was given to a third person in 1992. Financial settlements were subsequently made. I want to focus on where justice has not been delivered.

That answer speaks volumes. Let me be clear: every family that lost a loved one deserves truth and justice. I say that without equivocating or engaging in whataboutery. Let us deal with the Sallins case. Anyone looking at the detail of that matter can see that the investigation was rotten from start to finish. People's confessions were coerced, and that undermined the justice system. The problem is that, under the current framework, the Minister can just say that he does not think there should be a public inquiry. It should not be up to him, me or any other politician to decide which families are entitled to truth and justice. We should have a stand-alone mechanism for people, regardless of their background, the amount of money they have or their level of political influence. If individuals are entitled to the truth, they should have recourse to get it. Otherwise, how do we not create a scenario whereby there is the potential for political favouritism and a feeling that some people are entitled to truth and justice and others are not? That is why the proposal from the Irish Council for Civil Liberties and the Committee for the Administration of Justice warrants consideration.

I am going to conclude on a point of harmony. The Deputy makes a valid point. We do not want people to be selecting individual atrocities for the purpose of investigation. That is what the legacy framework is about. It will predominantly deal with Troubles-related killings. Those are the ones that have to be prioritised in the context of families that have not got justice yet and where there have been no prosecutions let alone convictions. There has been political agreement, but I would like to see legislative co-ordination between both jurisdictions to allow Troubles-related killings to be inquired into. Inquiries would focus on killings that happened during certain periods, and we would not have to decide who would get a public inquiry. The call from the Irish Council for Civil Liberties related to an inquiry in respect of Sallins. I am not going to do that. I hear the point the Deputy is making. We will benefit from having enacted legislation in both jurisdictions that allows for an independent quasi-judicial inquiry into and investigation of Troubles-related killings.