Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Hilary Benn and Michael Wheeler(2 weeks, 1 day ago)
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Hilary Benn
I do not accept that, because getting to a net zero world is really important for the future of humankind, and the Government have commitments that it is very important to fulfil. As for delays in the planning system and the way in which the courts operate in Northern Ireland, once again, those are matters for the Executive.
Michael Wheeler (Worsley and Eccles) (Lab)
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (Hilary Benn)
The IRC’s report highlights progress, but reminds us that there is still much to do to tackle paramilitarism and the harm it causes. Following discussion with the Irish Government, it has been agreed to support a short, independent scoping exercise to assess whether there is merit in a formal process to bring about paramilitary group disbandment, as the IRC has suggested, and whether there would be public support for such a process.
Michael Wheeler
Having spent lots of time with family in Northern Ireland since I was a small child, I have seen the progress made over the years and know what a difference it has made on the ground. I welcome this Government’s commitment to help secure that progress and tackle the scourge of paramilitarism. Does the Secretary of State share my view that making further progress will require a range of measures, and that the Executive’s programme on paramilitarism, criminality and organised crime is a crucial part of that?
Hilary Benn
I do indeed agree with my hon. Friend. That programme is doing very good work, and of course the UK Government are funding it together with the Executive. I also agree that a wide range of approaches needs to be taken, including continuing to use the full force of the law to deal with paramilitary criminality.
Northern Ireland: Legacy of the Troubles
Debate between Hilary Benn and Michael Wheeler(3 months, 1 week ago)
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Hilary Benn
I am very grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for his question. He played a distinguished role during his time as Secretary of State. He knows, as I know and we all know, the importance of trying to build a consensus to move forward. He raises the question of Omagh; I raised that with Micheál Martin only yesterday. I welcome very much the commitment that the Irish Government have given to co-operate with the Omagh inquiry, and I know that the inquiry looks forward to receiving that co-operation in the months ahead.
Michael Wheeler (Worsley and Eccles) (Lab)
I thank the Secretary of State for the decisive action that he has announced today and for bringing it to us in the House. Nothing can be allowed to jeopardise the progress that has been made in Northern Ireland. Will he confirm that the thread running through this action, and any future action, is the Government’s firm commitment to the victims and families, and to getting them the answers that they so richly deserve and finally need?
Hilary Benn
I am very happy to give my hon. Friend that assurance. I have talked tonight about a lot of process, future legislation, remedial orders and so on. That is why I said at the end of my statement that, in the end, this is about the families—the families, whom many Members in the House will have met, who still do not know what happened and who carry the incredible pain from what they have been through with them to this day. The very least we can do is to try really, really hard to find a way of giving them the answers that they have been seeking.