Committee publication · Special Report · 12 February 2026 · HC 1716
3rd Special Report - The Government’s new approach to addressing the legacy of the past in Northern Ireland: Government Response
From: Northern Ireland Affairs Committee
Inquiry: The Government's new approach to addressing the legacy of the past in Northern Ireland
Summary
This is the UK Government's response to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee's December 2025 report on addressing Northern Ireland's legacy. The Government outlines its approach to repealing the 2023 Legacy Act through the Northern Ireland Troubles Bill and a September 2025 Joint Framework with the Irish Government, detailing reforms to the ICRIR (to be renamed the Legacy Commission), restoration of inquests, veteran protections, and mechanisms for information disclosure and victim participation.
Key findings
- Government committed to repeal and replace the Legacy Act, abandoning immunity provisions widely opposed by victims, veterans, and human rights organisations, with comprehensive safeguards now enshrined in the Troubles Bill.
- Legacy Commission reforms include new governance structures with non-executive Oversight Board, independent review at 2, 5, and 7 years, and Victims and Survivors Advisory Group (VSAG); at least one Commissioner must have experience outside the UK.
- Irish Government committed €25 million over three years to legacy processes and will establish dedicated legacy unit in An Garda Síochána, returning to bilateral approach recognising shared responsibility for addressing Troubles.
- Troubles Bill restores halted inquests, relaxes restrictions on police investigation of non-serious Troubles offences (Clause 88), and ensures avenues for investigation of sexual crimes connected to death/serious injury or necessary for ECHR compliance.
- New veteran protections include prohibition on cold calling, exemption from giving unnecessary witness evidence on historical context, remote testimony rights, and duty to avoid duplication in investigations; Government continues engagement with defence community on additional measures but refuses to reintroduce immunity.
- Disclosure regime places Secretary of State duty to balance public interest against national security when considering sensitive information disclosure, subject to judicial review on principles akin to Inquiries Act 2005; Government rejects merits-based appeal model.
- ICIR operating under three-year pilot phase (one year preparatory, two years operational) to test effectiveness; sequencing provisions ensure Commission ECHR obligations take priority; 'firewall' mechanisms and information protocols in Troubles Bill prevent prejudice to legal proceedings.
Tone
ProceduralTopics
Key actors
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Northern Ireland Affairs Committee, Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery (ICRIR), Legacy Commission, UK Government, Irish Government, Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), Victims and Survivors Advisory Group (VSAG), Sir Declan Morgan
Notable line
“The Government will not, therefore, accept any proposals that seek to reintroduce the immunity provisions from the previous government's Legacy Act, which have been widely discredited – both politically and legally.”
Key Quotes
“The Government is grateful to the Committee for its continued scrutiny of the Government's approach to addressing Northern Ireland legacy.”
“The Northern Ireland (Legacy & Reconciliation) Act 2023 (the Legacy Act) received Royal Assent in September 2023 despite almost universal opposition in Northern Ireland and more widely, including from the Northern Ireland political parties, political parties in Westminster, victims and survivors across the United Kingdom …”
“We owe our Operation Banner veterans an enormous debt of gratitude – their service and their sacrifice will never be forgotten. The Government has a duty of care to all those who served.”
“Those provisions were widely opposed, including by many individuals who served the State in Northern Ireland who saw them as an affront to the rule of law they sought to protect, and as inferring a moral equivalence between them and the terrorists intent on causing violence.”
“National security is the first responsibility of the Government, and the Secretary of State is accountable to Parliament on matters of national security. Some information—even if historic—has present day implications for the life and safety of individuals, and national security.”
“As of 13 January 2026, it is our understanding that the ICRIR is handling 113 live investigations. I would like to assure the Committee that the Government will do all it can to support the ICRIR to effectively discharge its duties on behalf of families while the Government's proposed reforms are considered by Parliament …”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗