Irish Republican Alleged Incitement

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick Excerpts
Wednesday 30th April 2025

(2 weeks, 4 days ago)

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Baroness Smith of Basildon Portrait Baroness Smith of Basildon (Lab)
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All these things must be taken into account, and looking at the way forward is crucial. The noble Baroness is a little younger than me, but she will recall that, if you came home from school and people had been name-calling, it was said that, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me”. That was wrong. That may be the case for the playground, but it is not the case in real life. Words really do hurt. For David Amess’s family and for Jo Cox’s family, the so-called apology is not enough. Any apology that includes in the statement that there is a “coordinated smear campaign” against those who are issuing the apology has not understood what the word “apology” really means.

It is inciting not just violence but hatred. It is inciting a mood that can lead to violence. Unless we treat each other with respect in the discourse that we have, in this place, in the other place and outside, we will see more of this. It is one thing to be provocative and to be challenging—we are not against being provocative—but the statements here go way beyond that and are totally unacceptable.

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick Portrait Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Lab)
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My Lords, I condemn the words and the alleged actions of Kneecap. As a democratic Irish nationalist, I condemn the assault and the attacks on the people of Gaza. However, undoubtedly, there is no justification for a call to action by Kneecap in respect of the murder of MPs, particularly Conservative MPs. I put that on record as somebody from Northern Ireland. Can my noble friend the Leader of the House say what more Kneecap should do to recognise the offence that they have caused to many people, here and back in Ireland, and to appreciate the responsibility that goes with the music platform that they have?

Baroness Smith of Basildon Portrait Baroness Smith of Basildon (Lab)
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The noble Baroness is absolutely right. I am sure that everyone hearing her words will recognise her sincerity in rightly condemning this. I am not sure that I am the best person to give advice to people who have caused offence. If they do not understand how damaging, offensive and wrong their words are—in the two incidents that have been complained about, and which are being investigated by the police, and in an inadequate so-called apology—then they are not in touch with what is happening in society generally. I cannot give them advice, but an apology is heartfelt and can be seen as heartfelt by those who are being offended. We have not seen that in this case.

Gaza

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick Excerpts
Wednesday 5th March 2025

(2 months, 1 week ago)

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Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick Portrait Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Lab)
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My Lords, as part of that building of a sustainable peace, can the Minister indicate what further action will be taken with international partners if there are further flagrant abuses in respect of blocking aid to the people of Gaza?

Lord Collins of Highbury Portrait Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)
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We made our position very clear to the Israeli authorities about their actions risking breaching their obligations under international humanitarian law. We have, however, gone further, as the noble Lord, Lord Purvis, has said. We issued a statement this afternoon, together with France and Germany—again, our strong allies in this—making it clear that blocking aid is unacceptable and should be stopped. We are monitoring the situation; we know that a substantial amount of aid is trying to get in, and we will continue to pressure the Israelis to remove that block.

Israel and Palestine

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick Excerpts
Wednesday 22nd January 2025

(3 months, 3 weeks ago)

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Asked by
Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick Portrait Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick
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To ask His Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with international partners about establishing a fund to support infrastructure in Gaza and reconciliation between Israel and Palestine.

Lord Collins of Highbury Portrait The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Lord Collins of Highbury) (Lab)
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My Lords, this deal is a fragile process but one that the United Kingdom is ready to support. It is a first step. We must build confidence on all sides to help sustain the ceasefire, moving it from phase 1 through to phase 3, into a political process that sees lasting peace. We are already convening partners to build consensus for a post-conflict Gaza governance and security framework, and co-ordinated and effective support for recovery and reconstruction.

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick Portrait Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Lab)
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I thank my noble friend Minister for his Answer. Would he agree, as has been the case in other areas of conflict, that a vibrant, free and civil society is essential to building peace and reconciliation? In this respect, would it be possible for the Government to increase their funding to human rights groups in Palestine and Israel to underpin the organic growth of that much-needed civil society to try to achieve a shared future and reconciliation for all citizens of Israel and Gaza?

Lord Collins of Highbury Portrait Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)
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Through our aid programmes, we are supporting human rights organisations in Israel and Palestine on a range of issues. Their work is invaluable for providing us with relevant analysis, as well as for shaping our policy. We are clear that Palestinian leadership and civil society must be at the forefront of Gaza’s recovery. The United Kingdom is committed to promoting an inclusive approach to recovery and reconstruction, supporting the political process towards a two-state solution.

Patrick Finucane Murder

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick Excerpts
Thursday 12th September 2024

(8 months ago)

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Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent Portrait Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent (Lab)
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My Lords, I want to put on record my tribute to the noble Lord, Lord Dodds. His comments demonstrate the level of hurt that we are still touching on every time we discuss the Troubles, and the pain that so many people are still experiencing. There is very little I can say to give reassurance in terms of the specifics of his pain and that of those he touched on, but I reassure him that there is no hierarchy here. This is a unique case that was discussed and agreed in 2001 at Weston Park. We are ensuring that we deliver, as we did on the inquiries for Billy White, Robert Hamill and Rosemary Nelson. The case of Patrick Finucane is the only case in which this long-standing commitment to establish an inquiry had yet to be met, until yesterday. However, I appreciate the noble Lord’s concerns and look forward to working with him to ensure that the rest of the legacy programme is fit for purpose and that every person who was touched by the Troubles feels that they have the appropriate access to justice and truth.

Baroness Smith of Basildon Portrait Baroness Smith of Basildon (Lab)
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My Lords, there is enough time for everyone who wishes to speak to do so. I call my noble friend Lady Ritchie first and then we will go back to the Cross Benches.

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick Portrait Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Lab)
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My Lords, I welcome my noble friend to the Front Bench and the decision of the Secretary of State to grant a public inquiry into the murder of Patrick Finucane, an incident I recall well. I also point out that all murders in Northern Ireland, carried out by paramilitaries or state forces, were totally wrong, inappropriate and unacceptable. I have two questions to ask the Minister. When will there be a repeal of the legacy legislation and a definite move towards inquests, investigations and inquiries to solve the problems and challenges faced by victims and survivors of the Troubles? Will the Government withdraw the application by the previous Secretary of State for a judicial review of the decision of the coroner in March this year into the case of Sean Brown, which was also mired in collusion?

Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent Portrait Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent (Lab)
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I thank my noble friend Lady Ritchie for her questions. The Secretary of State has made it clear that the Government will repeal and replace the legacy Act, including by reversing the prohibition on bringing new civil proceedings and proposing measures to allow inquests that were previously halted. As the Secretary of State said in the other place yesterday, the Government are now in the process of consulting all interested parties about how to give effect to the repeal and replace the commitment in the gracious Speech. We will bring that forward as quickly as possible. The Government are also in the process of addressing the incompatibility findings of the High Court and, when parliamentary time allows, we will lay a draft remedial order under Section 10 of the Human Rights Act 1998 to remove the offending provisions from the statute book.

It would not be appropriate for me to comment here on the specific case mentioned by my noble friend, but I reaffirm the commitment made by the Secretary of State yesterday that the Government will carefully consider each individual case in order to reach a sensible way forward.

NATO and European Political Community Meetings

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick Excerpts
Tuesday 23rd July 2024

(9 months, 3 weeks ago)

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Baroness Smith of Basildon Portrait Baroness Smith of Basildon (Lab)
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My Lords, the climate emergencies that we have seen increasingly recently, with extreme weather conditions, have brought home to many people the importance of the issue, whereas perhaps it was previously seen as a side issue. The fact that the Prime Minister references that specifically in his Statement as being one of the drivers for migration is important. I can therefore give the noble Lord the assurance on that ground.

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick Portrait Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Lab)
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My Lords, I welcome my noble friend to the Front Bench, particularly as Leader of the House and Lord Privy Seal. I thank her for the Statement and its contents, particularly with reference to the restoration of funding to UNRWA and the unequivocal position on the ECHR. Those are important principles, and I refer also to where the Statement says in relation to the Middle East

“we call on all sides to recommit to stability, peace, normalisation”.

That applies both to Israel and to Gaza. It is vital. Can my noble friend the Minister indicate whether discussions have taken place within NATO and the European Political Community about a reconstruction fund for those areas similar to what we had in Northern Ireland in terms of the International Fund for Ireland?

Baroness Smith of Basildon Portrait Baroness Smith of Basildon (Lab)
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I am not sure whether my noble friend means a reconstruction fund in terms of Ukraine or wider. In terms of Ukraine, of course, there has been a discussion about how we use the frozen Russian assets and sanctions. I was not present at all the meetings. I shall find out for her whether that issue was discussed.