British Ambassador Responds to IAUC Finucane Letter; Government Continues to Hide Behind Inquiries Act Sham

British Ambassador Nigel Sheinwald has responded to the letter from the IAUC making a renewed call for an independent public inquiry into the murder of Patrick Finucane. The text of the letter reads as follows:

Dear Ms. McCabe:

Thank you for your letter of 21 January.

Let me begin by saying that the murder of Mr. Finucane was a crime that the Government condemns absolutely.

You ask when Government will “allow an independent inquiry to proceed uninhindered.” The Government’s position remains that if there is to be a statutory inquiry into the death of Patrick Finucane, the only way it can take place is under the Inquiries Act 2005. The Inquiries Act is the only statutory basis for any such inquiry; all the old legislation has been repealed.

The Government is clear that the Inquiries Act provides for fully independent and effective inquiries. The judges chairing two of the other inquiries recommended by Judge Cory–the Billy Wright and Robert Hamill inquiries–asked the Government to apply the Inquiries Act to their own inuiries because they felt it would enable them to carry out their work more effectively. A Finucane inquiry carried out under the Inquiries Act would have full statutory powers to compel evidence and witnesses and would be public to the extent possible. The Independent Chairman would have full access to all the evidence; he or she would see every witness and read every document.

You may be aware that over the last 12 months the Government has been in correspondence with the Finucane family’s legal representatives about the basis on which any inquiry would be established. Only once discussions with the Finucane family and their legal representatives have concluded will we be in a position to take a position about the way forward.

Yours sincerely,

Nigel Sheinwald