Debate contribution: Legacy: Holding the Irish Government to Account

Debate contribution by Mr Eóin Tennyson on 23 September 2025.

MLA

Mr Eóin Tennyson

Party at the time

Alliance Party

Date

23 September 2025

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Private Members' Business

Heading

Legacy: Holding the Irish Government to Account

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5129344

Read the official Assembly record

Text

When we discuss legacy, victims and survivors must always be at the centre of our discussions. One of the greatest failures of this place and of the two Governments over the past 27 years since the Good Friday Agreement has been the perennial failure to find a way forward or deliver a comprehensive package to deal with our past and its legacy. That has let down not just victims but wider society. It has acted as a barrier to truth, justice and accountability and to building the truly reconciled, united and integrated community to which we on these Benches aspire. However, more callous is the perennial willingness of Members to use victims as political footballs. We have seen it when perpetrators have been eulogised by some parties in the Chamber or, I have to say, when politicians have stood outside courts alongside alleged perpetrators or, worse, have met representatives of active paramilitary groups, pouring fuel on the flames and causing even further trauma to victims. Allow me to be clear at the beginning of my contribution and say that, since my party's foundation, it has been unwavering in its commitment to the rule of law and that we will take no lectures from any party that flirts with terrorists and paramilitaries. Alliance has also been clear that the border should never be a barrier to victims in accessing the truth and justice that they deserve. The Irish Government have a duty and an obligation to ensure full cooperation and the delivery of reciprocal arrangements. The fundamental problem with the motion is that it condemns any bilateral negotiations with the Irish Government. You cannot deliver a comprehensive package and have Irish Government cooperation in the absence of that negotiation between the Secretary of State and the Tánaiste. That is why we will oppose the original text. Indeed, since the motion was tabled, a significant new framework has been announced. Like other parties, Alliance wants to take time to consult victims and survivors, who must be at the heart of our considerations. We want to see the detail of any legislation that will be passed either at Westminster or by the Dáil.

It is clear, however, that there has been a significant change in substance and tone. That change is to be welcomed. As part of that framework, there is now a commitment from the Irish Government to investigate all Troubles-related incidents that happened in the state. That is progress, and it must be acknowledged. There is also a commitment to set up a new legacy unit and cooperate fully with any inquiries that happen in the United Kingdom. Let us take time to consider the detail of the legislation that will go through the Dáil. I give way to the Member.

I agree: it is too little, too late. Perhaps, I will come back to that point as I close my remarks. There has been too little from the UK Government, the Irish Government and, indeed, many of those who were involved in paramilitary organisations during the Troubles. There are failures on all sides. The challenge with the motion is that it does not acknowledge that shared ownership and responsibility across all parties.

I will, briefly.

Well, that is your view. I did not read the motion in the way in which you have just described it. It focuses solely on the Irish Government and rejects engagement with them. Because it was tabled prematurely, it does not acknowledge the progress that has been made in the past week, and that is a flaw. There is a clear departure from the folly of any notion of amnesty. The callous approach of the previous Government was to depart unilaterally from the Stormont House Agreement and seek to shut down avenues for truth and justice for victims across our community and society. Ultimately, any process must command the confidence of victims. It must have independent oversight of the involvement of both the UK and Irish Governments. It must be human rights-compliant and have active participation from victims and their families. There is shared ownership, which the motion does not recognise. I hope that that can be redressed through the new framework. There are those who say that we should simply move on. That is easy to say when you have not lost someone; it is much harder for a family living with that pain. Getting a comprehensive legacy process is not about living in the past; it is about dealing with our past comprehensively so that we can move forward together towards a truly united and reconciled community. That ought to be where our focus is. I will take no lectures from parties on either side of the Chamber who have frustrated that process for 30 years.

793 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 13:10 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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