Northern Ireland

Changes to Northern Ireland legacy bill not ‘some great cover-up’, British minister claims

The Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, said the Irish government remains opposed to the bill

  • June 9, 2023
Taoiseach Leo Varakdar: “To take away the possibility of justice from those families, even if it is remote, is wrong in my view.” Picture: Sam Boal/Rollingnews

Proposed changes to a controversial British government bill on the legacy of the Northern Ireland Troubles are not about covering up state wrongdoing, a minister has insisted.

Lord Caine, the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) minister who tabled the amendments, acknowledged the draft legislation was “very challenging” for victims of the conflict, but he urged them to give the proposals “fair wind”.

The bill has proved highly contentious, with victims’ groups, all of the main Stormont ...