Question to the Northern Ireland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what assessment his Department has made of the compatibility of the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill with Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

This legislation, which had its Second Reading on 24 May, deals with legacy issues in a way that complies with international human rights obligations, supports information recovery and reconciliation, and responds to the needs of individual victims and survivors, as well as society as a whole.

The legislation does not prohibit investigations into those Troubles-related incidents which might engage the UK’s obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights. We will establish the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery to conduct investigations into Troubles-related deaths and cases of very serious injury, for the purposes of information recovery.

We have included various measures to ensure the body is equipped with the necessary powers to secure information and conduct thorough, Article 2 compliant investigations.

We are confident that these measures fulfil our Article 2 obligations.