Troubles Bill: Oireachtas committee tells Government to oppose Attorney General role

Following publication, it will be sent to Minister for Justice

According to RTÉ News, the Oireachtas Committee on Justice has finished scrutinising the general scheme of Ireland's legacy legislation.

Its report recommends that the Government reject a clause in the UK's amended Northern Ireland Troubles Bill.

It due for publication on Thursday 5 November.

The recommendation lands as the Government works through a packed autumn schedule.

That including the final stretch of Budget 2027 negotiations, while the Bill itself was sent to the UK House of Lords two weeks ago.

What the Troubles Bill would change

Committee chairman and Sinn Féin TD Matt Carthy wrote in the report's foreword that concern "arises from proposed amendments that would give the British Attorney General a decisive role in legacy prosecutions, raising questions about the independence of prosecutorial decision-making."

Why the Oireachtas committee is pushing back

According to Carthy's foreword, it is "essential" that any legislation on legacy co-operation does not "undermine accountability, weaken the principles underpinning the Good Friday Agreement, or create a system that affords preferential treatment or a degree of impunity to former members of the British Armed Forces."

At the same time, it also questions procedural protections offered to UK security personnel.

What is more, the report recommends keeping Ireland's interstate case against the UK government open until legacy inquest concerns are addressed.

Following publication, it will be sent to Minister for Justice Jim O'Callaghan.

What does the Oireachtas committee want changed in the Troubles Bill?

The committee wants the Government to reject the clause giving the Attorney General for England and Wales a role in legacy prosecutions.

In addition, it wants to keep legacy inquests running after the Legacy Commission winds up.

What happens to the report next?

The report goes to Minister for Justice Jim O'Callaghan after its publication on Thursday 5 November.

Its recommendations will feed into the Government's position as the Bill proceeds through the House of Lords.