The government has faced its first defeat over its so-called Troubles amnesty after peers backed stripping a key part of the controversial legislation.
On Monday the House of Lords—supported by 197 votes to 185—demanded removal of the contentious immunity provision in the proposed Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill.
The move was spearheaded by former Labour Northern Ireland secretary Lord Murphy of Torfaen, who said the measure is “almost universally condemned” in the province.
It comes just days after Cabinet Minister Johnny Mercer told MPs he expected the legislation—which aims to end all conflict-related prosecutions—to become law within weeks.
Mercer made the comments despite warnings by Irish premier Leo Varadkar that his government would consider taking an interstate case against Westminster if the proposals became law.
The new law would provide immunity for people—including terrorists and members of the security services—accused of crimes during the Troubles, as long as they cooperate with a new truth recovery body, known as the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery (ICRIR).
The bill would also halt future civil cases and inquests linked to killings during the conflict.
UK ‘Majority’ Against Bill
In a further setback for the government, peers voted by 203 to 179—majority 24—for a move to ensure a minimum standard for case reviews by the new ICRIR.This would require investigations to be conducted to criminal standards, along the lines of Operation Kenova, which saw former Bedfordshire Chief Constable Jon Boutcher lead fresh probes into a number of atrocities carried out by the Provisional IRA’s so-called “nutting squad.”
The defeats mean a tussle between the unelected chamber and government, which will see the legislation move between the Lords and Commons.
Speaking about the conditional immunity measure, Lord Murphy said, “This is the most contentious and controversial part of the bill. It is almost universally condemned in Northern Ireland.”
The Lords’ intervention came just hours after human rights group Amnesty International said the majority of people across the UK oppose the contentious bill.
Amnesty commissioned Savanta to carry out a UK-wide poll which indicates that nine in ten adults believe people should still be prosecuted for serious crimes, even if they were committed decades ago, while only 6 percent say they should not.
Amnesty has strongly urged peers to reject the bill, and is calling for Parliament to throw the bill out.
Findings from the poll include that seven in ten adults said people accused of serious crimes, such as murder, should not be able to receive immunity from prosecution in exchange for providing information about the crimes, while only one in five say they should and 13 per cent surveyed said they didn’t know.
Two thirds of UK adults said victims and/or the families of victims of serious crimes, such as murder, should have access to an independent inquest.
Nine in ten or 87 percent of UK adults say that people should still be prosecuted for serious crimes, such as murder, even if they were committed decades ago, while only 6 percent say they should not.
‘Morally Repugnant’
The survey also found that more than half of UK adults say that those accused of killings in relation to the Troubles should not be able to receive immunity from prosecution in exchange for providing information about the crimes, while only one in five say they should.It also found that six in ten Conservative voters said that those accused of Troubles-related killings should not be able to receive immunity from prosecution in exchange for providing information about the crimes.
Amnesty International UK’s Northern Ireland deputy director Grainne Teggart said the findings show the bill to be “out of step” with the government’s electorate.
“These morally repugnant plans are an affront to decency, human rights and the rule of law and must be scrapped,” she said.
“The government has continued to ignore widespread concern from the UN, Council of Europe bodies, U.S. Congress, Irish Parliament, Amnesty and many others.”
Teggart said that if government ministers continue to push the bill through, they would be “ignoring their own voters”.
“These figures must give the government pause—it is, quite frankly, reckless to proceed with a bill so strongly opposed.”
Teggart said Parliament has a significant decision to make in the weeks ahead.
“Will they stand with victims, or will they join the UK government in this act of betrayal and sacrifice victims’ rights to protect perpetrators,” she said.
The Amnesty findings were based on 2,171 UK adults aged 18 and over interviewed online between June 16-18, 2023.
Data was weighted to be representative of England, Scotland and Wales by age, sex, region and social grade, according to Amnesty. The survey also took into account people’s voting habits.
All of Northern Ireland’s political leaders have publicly opposed the bill, including Democratic Unionist Party leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson.
In a letter sent to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak last week, Donaldson said that an “amnesty for terrorists is not only an affront to justice but a gateway to further attempts to rewrite and airbrush the past.”
The government has so far seen off challenges relating to the bringing of public prosecutions and the bar on inquests, investigations and inquiries into killings during the conflict.
