Northern Editor
The Government has reacted with dismay to reports that the UK authorities are to ban prosecutions of former British soldiers who served in Northern Ireland during the Troubles.
The Daily Telegraph and Times newspapers are reporting that the move is to be announced in the Queen s speech next week.
It is claimed the legislation would introduce a statute of limitations so there would be no prosecutions for any alleged crimes committed before the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998.
The reports say the ban would apply across the board, so would also include former members of the IRA and loyalist paramilitary organisations.
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Amnesty boss Colm O’Gorman has accused drug companies of ‘reprehensible scaremongering’. By Ian Curran Thursday 6 May 2021, 5:23 PM 5 hours ago 19,074 Views 15 Comments
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IRELAND’S MAIN PHARMACEUTICAL industry lobby group has called on the Government to oppose President Joe Biden’s support for a temporary waiver of intellectual property rules around Covid-19 vaccines.
US Trade Representative Katherine Tai last night announced that the US will remove its objection to a waiver of the 1995 Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement at the World Trade Organization (WTO).
“The Administration believes strongly in intellectual property protections, but in service of ending this pandemic, supports the waiver of those protections for Covid-19 vacc
Ms McDonald acknowledged that so-called âletters of comfortâ had been issued to IRA prisoners. This was under the peace agreement and was for prisoners who were in prison serving sentences, she explained.
The issue of how to deal with the past was âa long running soreâ. The Stormont Agreement was an internationally binding agreement, she said and the Government now had to be forceful in its engagement with the British government, she said.
âThe British state has consistently acted in this way and itâs time to draw a line under it.â
Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney also said the Government is opposed to any unilateral action on legacy which is contrary to the Stormont House agreement.
Q&A: What are the new plans around prosecutions of British soldiers in North? Reports suggesting UK government intends to ‘ban prosecutions’ condemned in Ireland
Thu, May 6, 2021, 14:55 Updated: Thu, May 6, 2021, 15:01
Reports that the UK government plans to introduce a statute of limitations to prevent the prosecution of soldiers accused of committing crimes during the Troubles have been condemned by the Government and by politicians on both sides of the Border.
What are these new plans?
According to the Daily Telegraph and the Times, the UK government is to introduce a ban on prosecutions under new legislation, details of which are to be given in the queen’s speech setting out the government’s agenda on Tuesday. The newspapers say a forthcoming Bill on legacy issues is expected to introduce a statutory bar on prosecutions for alleged crimes pre-1998, which will apply to everyone accused of Troubles-relates crimes, including paramilitaries and soldiers.
Michel Barnier details bewilderment with British approach to Brexit talks In new book former EU chief negotiator never wavers from view that Britain made mistake
Wed, May 5, 2021, 22:00 Updated: Wed, May 5, 2021, 22:49
Michel Barnier describes former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar as “courageous”, while Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney is “always shrewd, methodical and well-informed”. Photograph: John Thys/AFP via Getty Images
On Christmas Eve last year, as the Brexit negotiations were entering their final minutes, Michel Barnier sought out his British counterpart in a room in the European Commission’s Berlaymont headquarters.
“After nine months of negotiations, it is the last time I would see David Frost and our final exchange is professional and cold,” Barnier, who was chief Brexit negotiator, writes in The Great Illusion: a secret Brexit diary (2016-2020)