Peter Hain: NI must look to the future

Pursuing British soldiers involved in what became known as Bloody Sunday is a "waste" of police time, ex-Northern Ireland Secretary Peter Hain has said.

Writing in the Sunday Telegraph, Mr Hain said the current focus should be on attacks from dissident IRA groups.

His intervention came after it emerged UK governments had written to more than 180 republican paramilitary suspects between 2001 and 2012 to say they would not be prosecuted.

Speaking to BBC Breakfast, Mr Hain said that it was often difficult to secure enough evidence to prosecute for crimes that had taken place decades ago, and that it was important for Northern Ireland to look to the future rather than the past.