Government to appeal over High Court ruling on Legacy Act

PA

The Government has announced it is to appeal over a ruling by the High Court in Belfast that one of the key elements of the Northern Ireland Troubles Legacy Act is unlawful.

Last week, Mr Justice Adrian Colton ruled that the provision for conditional immunity from prosecution for Troubles offences in the legislation is not compliant with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

The judge also said there is no evidence that the immunity provision will in any way contribute to reconciliation in Northern Ireland.

However, he did rule that a new body set up to probe Troubles killings could carry out human rights-compliant investigations.

The victims who brought the legal challenge described their battle as “half won” and vowed to fight on, potentially to the Supreme Court.

Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris then said the Government “will consider Mr Justice Colton’s findings very, very carefully”, but added that ministers “remain committed to implementing the Legacy Act”.

On Thursday, the Government announced that it has lodged an application to appeal against the ruling.