Clause 23
Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill
4:30 pm
Lady Hermon (North Down, UUP)
I beg to move amendment No. 30, in clause 23, page 16, line 5, leave out ‘2010’ and insert ‘2008’.
In this most miscellaneous of miscellaneous Bills, we are now moving on to something completely different. This clause takes us away from donations to political parties, away from the Chief Electoral Officer, and into part 6 of the Bill, which is headed “Miscellaneous”. The first of the miscellaneous items that appears under clause 23 is arms decommissioning. I say with some sadness that once again we are being asked to extend an amnesty period.
I wish to bring to the Committee’s attention the words of a Secretary of State for Northern Ireland:
“In the face of IRA decommissioning, I cannot see what possible reason loyalists now have for retaining their weapons. They certainly need not do so for the protection of their communities, which is the rightful preserve of the police and the security forces. They used to argue that they would decommission if the IRA made the first move. Well, the first move has been made: the crucial act has been carried out. It is now up to loyalist paramilitary organisations to demonstrate their support of peaceful and democratic ideals.”—[Official Report, 17 December 2001; Vol. 377, c. 45-46.]
I am sure that every single person in this room would say, “Hear, hear,” to that. Was that the current Secretary of State? No. Was it his immediate predecessor? No. Those words are in fact five years old. They were delivered by the current Secretary of State for Defence over five years ago. On that occasion, the House was being asked to consider, yet again,the Northern Ireland Arms Decommissioning (Amendment) Bill to extend the original decommissioning period for five years.
Five years ago, the then Secretary of State made it quite clear that in a democracy politics and violence do not mix. He insisted that if the IRA had moved on decommissioning—and it had at that stage—then loyalists had no excuse for not doing likewise. I am exceedingly concerned and disappointed that the Government now choose, under clause 23, to send completely mixed messages to loyalists.
The Government, the Northern Ireland Office and the current Secretary of State all love to quote from the Independent Monitoring Commission report when it suits them; if I might, I shall refer to the IMC’s eighth report, published on 1 February 2006. I know that there is another current IMC report involving both Governments, but it has not been published and made available to the wider world in time for our consideration.
Let me just remind Members about the activities of loyalist paramilitaries. Where do I start? There are so many—the Ulster Volunteer Force, the Red Hand Commando, the Loyalist Volunteer Force. They were responsible for the feuding that led to the deaths of four individuals. East Belfast members of the Ulster Defence Association were responsible, in the view of the IMC, for the murder on 4 October of their fellow member, Jim Gray, who was on bail following his arrest. Unfortunately, the litany of carnage caused by loyalist paramilitaries continues, according to the IMC, and the statistics are well known.
The current Secretary of State challenged loyalist paramilitaries on 21 September 2005, when he said:
“The choice for loyalist paramilitaries is clear: play the political role that you claim as your motive, or face the rigour of the law as the mafia organisations into which you seem to be degenerated. You will not be allowed to terrorise your own community”.
If that is what the Northern Ireland Office really expects of loyalist paramilitaries, why in heaven’s name is it at the same time sending out the contradictory message to them and others—the Continuity IRA, the Real IRA—that a deadline for arms decommissioning is not really a deadline and that there will continue to be an amnesty not just for five years, and then another five years, but right up to 2010? I am sure that, at that stage, the Secretary of State, whoever it is, will bring more legislation before the House to extend the amnesty.
For once, could the Government just mean what they say? Pledges were given to the people of Northern Ireland not so long ago that the amnesty period had a cut-off time of 2007. Instead of now extending it to 2010, let us just delete the reference. I know that my amendment substitutes the date 2008, which tries to find a middle way, but I just want a clear message to be sent, particularly to loyalist paramilitaries: “Enough is enough; get on with the decommissioning.”