The Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023 (Remedial) Order 2025
373Ayes
106Noes
Carried · majority 267 · Government won173 did not vote
652 Members · Aye 373 · No 106 · DNV 173 · grey dots in centre are abstentions
Analysis
Commons
Commons
On 21 January 2026, MPs voted to approve the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023 (Remedial) Order 2025, a measure designed to bring the Troubles legacy legislation into compliance with the European Convention on Human Rights. The Order passed by 373 votes to 106. The original 2023 Act, passed under the previous Conservative government, had introduced a conditional immunity scheme for those who cooperated with a new Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery. Courts subsequently found provisions of that Act incompatible with human rights law. The Remedial Order is the government's mechanism to address those incompatibilities, restoring certain accountability and legal routes for victims and their families. Every Labour, Liberal Democrat, Labour and Co-operative, Green, and Alliance MP who voted did so in favour. All 90 voting Conservatives opposed the Order, joined by all five Reform UK MPs and all five Democratic Unionist Party MPs. There were no Labour rebels. The vote reflects a sharp divide between the current government, which frames the Order as a necessary human rights correction, and Conservative and unionist opponents who either defended the 2023 Act's original design or objected on other grounds.
Voting Aye meant
Support the Remedial Order as a necessary step to fix human rights incompatibilities in the Troubles legacy legislation and restore some accountability for victims and families.
Voting No meant
Oppose the Remedial Order, either because it does not go far enough in restoring victims' rights and justice mechanisms, or because it undermines the original intent of the 2023 Act.
Each row is one party. The stacked bar gives the within-party split of Aye / No / Absent; the columns on the right give the raw counts. The whip column shows the published party position — “Free vote” means the whip was formally removed for this division.
Party
Whip
Aye / No / Abs
Aye
No
Abs
Labour Party
Whipped Aye
272
0
89
Conservative and Unionist Party
Whipped No
0
90
26
Liberal Democrats
Whipped Aye
59
0
12
Labour and Co-operative Party
Whipped Aye
31
0
11
Independent
—
3
2
8
Scottish National Party
—
0
0
9
Reform UK
Whipped No
0
5
3
Sinn Féin
—
0
0
7
Democratic Unionist Party
Whipped No
0
5
0
Green Party of England and Wales
Whipped Aye
4
0
0
Plaid Cymru
—
0
0
4
Social Democratic and Labour Party
—
1
0
1
Your Party
—
1
0
1
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
—
1
0
0
Restore Britain
—
0
0
1
Speaker
—
0
0
1
Traditional Unionist Voice
—
0
1
0
Ulster Unionist Party
—
0
1
0
Source · Hansard · UK Parliament Votes API · whip status from announced positions; “free vote” indicates the whip was formally removed
The remedial order is necessary to remove unlawful immunity provisions and restore civil claims access, building trust for a fair legacy process compliant with human rights obligations.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (5,487 words) →
The Government had other options including appealing to the Supreme Court or waiting for its ruling; proceeding now is legally questionable (ultra vires) and morally inconsistent given Labour's past support for conditional immunity.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (3,979 words) →
The remedial order correctly removes unlawful immunity and restores justice routes; veterans never wanted immunity but fairness under universal legal standards, which accountability strengthens.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (676 words) →
The remedial order is necessary to comply with human rights law and court rulings; immunity was corrosive and wrongly extended to terrorists, but further amendments are needed in the Bill to protect veterans from disproportionate action.Liberal Democrat · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,351 words) →
The remedial order will enable asymmetric lawfare against veterans while IRA sympathisers weaponise a flawed 'victim' definition that includes convicted terrorists; primary legislation was constitutionally proper.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (2,304 words) →
The Government's reliance on a technical argument (declaration remains while appeal pending) to bypass section 10 requirements is legally unmeritorious and undermines the substance of ongoing Supreme Court deliberations.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (165 words) →
The Joint Committee on Human Rights, while noting the unusual simultaneity of remedial order and Bill, endorsed the order as addressing genuine incompatibilities and building trust in Northern Ireland's legacy process.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,670 words) →
The Government's framing creates false equivalence; the 1998 Good Friday agreement already established equivalence before the law through early release schemes, so the 2023 Act did not initiate this.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (1,027 words) →
Sources
Division dataUK Parliament Votes API
DebateHansard · Commons
Stance analysisAI analysis · Claude 4.x
LicenceOpen Parliament Licence v3.0