Former defence ministers round on May over Troubles inquiry
FORMER defence ministers and soldiers last night launched a blistering attack on the Government for “scapegoating a few old soldiers” to appease Sinn Fein, as elderly veterans faced being hauled through the courts on charges dating back to the Seventies.
In a parliamentary debate calling for a statute of limitations on the prosecution of historic allegations, senior Tory MPS rounded on the Government for its “betrayal of our service personnel”.
It came after the Government announced a consultation on plans to investigate hundreds of unsolved deaths during The Troubles as part of its work to address the conflict’s legacy.
The current proposal contains no statute of limitations, meaning soldiers could be prosecuted for events that occurred more than 40 years ago.
Sir Michael Fallon, the former defence secretary, said it was “morally wrong” to reopen cases. Mark Francois, a former defence minister, said he had “never been so annoyed with my own government” and backed calls for a statute of limitations for veterans.
The debate, called by Sir Henry Bellingham, the former Conservative minister, attracted fiery contributions from MPS who had served in the Armed Forces, including in Northern Ireland.
Colonel Bob Stewart described as “total twaddle” the Government’s stance that it had “no choice” but to prosecute historic allegations. No one in the cabinet had experience of military service and the “split-second decisions” it involved, he said.
James Heappey, a Conservative MP and former soldier who served in Northern Ireland, said: “The equivalency that is being made between the service of the British Armed Forces and terrorists is immoral and the public outrage is entirely understandable.”
The DUP and Sinn Fein have previously objected to the introduction of a statute of limitations, with the DUP, whose support the Government relies on for a majority in Parliament, fearing the move could result in an amnesty for IRA terrorists.
The Cabinet remains riven with disagreements over the plan to create a Historical Investigations Unit to look into unsolved deaths from the conflict.
Senior ministers, led by Gavin Williamson, the Defence Secretary, are understood to have expressed serious concerns that the move would prompt a witch hunt of veterans. Mark Lancaster, the armed forces minister, said a statute of limitations was “reasonable” and urged colleagues to put the idea forward in the consultation.