PM says government will 'look at every conceivable way' to stop Gerry Adams payout
Share:
Sir Keir Starmer has said he will "look at every conceivable way" to stop former Troubles internees claiming compensation after a report warned ex-Sinn Fein president Gerry Adams is in line for "a payday from the taxpayer". Currently, the law under the Legacy Act blocks Mr Adams and others interned without trial in the 1970s from claiming compensation for unlawful detention but Belfast's high court ruled parts of it were against the European Convention on Human Rights.
In a report backed by 16 peers, including shadow attorney general Lord Wolfson KC, the Policy Exchange thinktank criticised the government's plans to lift the ban. Labour have started the process of repealing the Legacy Act, and said the previous Conservative government's approach to the Troubles' legacy was "almost universally opposed in Northern Ireland".
Sir Keir addressed the Policy Exchange report and its claim Mr Adams would get compensation if parts of the Legacy Act are repealed during Prime Minister's Questions, saying the Legacy Act was "unfit". "Not least because it gave immunity to hundreds of terrorists and wasn't supported by victims in Northern Ireland nor, I believe, any of the political parties in Northern Ireland," he said.
"The court found it unlawful. This is a serious point. "We will put in place a better framework. "We're working on a draft, remedial order and replacement legislation, and we will look at every conceivable way to prevent these types of cases claiming damages. And I say that on the record.".
