Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what lessons they learnt from the (1) process followed by, and (2) conclusions of, the Iraq Historic Allegations Team; whether any such lessons are applicable to any ongoing investigations into soldiers who served in Northern Ireland between 1969 and 1994; and what plans they have, if any, to establish a similar team to oversee any such investigations.

The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has made clear that the Government is committed to introducing legislation to address the legacy of the Troubles. This legislation will place information recovery and reconciliation at the heart of a revised legacy system that puts victims first. The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has begun the process of engaging key partners on a way forward which will focus on reconciliation, delivering for victims and ensuring that all Service Personnel who served in Northern Ireland are treated as fairly as those who served overseas.

Where appropriate, we will draw on the lessons from the Iraq Historic Allegations Team. In Northern Ireland, during the Troubles, the Armed Forces acted in support of the civil powers, within the UK. This is different to military action outside the UK.