Exclusive: Ministers to ban prosecutions of Northern Ireland veterans

Ministers are set to introduce a ban on prosecutions of Northern Ireland veterans under new legislation to be announced in the Queen’s Speech next week, The Telegraph has learned.

The Government is finalising plans to block trials linked to the Troubles and move instead towards an approach that echoes the “truth and reconciliation” model used in post-Apartheid South Africa.

It will place an emphasis on reconciling divided communities in Northern Ireland, while also renewing efforts to retrieve and recover information about fatalities in a bid to offer a sense of closure to the families of victims.

Ministers believe that prosecutions linked to the Troubles are increasingly unlikely to result in convictions, because any evidence is likely to be inadmissible due to the passage of time.

On Tuesday, the murder trial of two ex-paratroopers accused of shooting Joe McCann, an IRA commander responsible for the deaths of 15 British sodliers, collapsed after just six days.

A judge in Belfast ruled as inadmissible statements the soldiers - known only as Soldier A and Soldier C - had been compelled to give to a superior officer in the hours after the shooting.

The forthcoming Bill on Northern Ireland legacy issues is expected to introduce a statutory bar on prosecutions related to the Troubles. It will apply across the board in the region - covering former IRA members as well veterans of the Armed Forces.

It is distinguished from an amnesty, which involves the Government formally pardoning people. Nor will it apply retrospectively; previous convictions will still stand. An exemption will be carved out for gross human rights violations, such as torture or war crimes, it is understood.

The mechanism is also expected to be significantly tougher than that brought forward to protect current and former personnel related to their service abroad, which was set out in the Overseas Operations Act that became law last month.

That legislation, led by the Ministry of Defence, set out a statutory presumption against prosecution once five years has lapsed after an alleged crime committed by a member of personnel on active duty abroad.

It is understood that the precise details of the Northern Ireland legacy Bill, which is being led by the Northern Ireland Office, are still being finalised and only a faint outline may be offered at the Queen’s Speech on Tuesday.

The prime minister is facing accusations he has dragged his feet over introducing legislation to protect troops involved in so-called legacy killings during the Troubles.

Johnny Mercer, who was sacked as Veterans’ Affairs minister before he could resign in principle over Soldier A and Soldier C being taken to court, has highlighted that the past two Queen’s Speeches have contained lines promising to take action to protect veterans of Northern Ireland - but the Government has so far failed to deliver.

He is leading a protest against the ongoing prosecutions with a march on Westminster planned for this Saturday. More than 20,000 people have currently signed up to attend.

A Whitehall source told The Telegraph on Wednesday night: “We have been working extremely hard to deliver on our manifesto commitments in relation to addressing the legacy of the Troubles - for both victims and veterans. Our engagement on our proposals is ongoing.”

Brandon Lewis, the Northern Ireland Secretary, was in Dublin on Wednesday and legacy issues are likely to have been high on the agenda in his talks with the Irish government.

Support from Ireland, from Unionist and Nationalist communities in Northern Ireland, and from veterans groups, is seen as essential to the success of any plan brought forward by ministers in Westminster.

Mr Lewis is viewed in Whitehall as having made more progress on the complicated issue than his predecessors. He has said that his ambition is to introduce legislation in the Commons before the summer recess.