Legacy Act: Lord Hain accuses state bodies of 'running down clock'

Labour peer Lord Hain has claimed state bodies are "running down the clock" towards 1 May, when the Legacy Act will come into force and effectively call a halt to fresh Troubles-related court cases.

He told the House of Lords there has been an "abject failure by state officials and agencies" to release information on killings despite orders from a coroner.

The new law will replace Troubles inquests with investigations into deaths by the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery (ICRIR).

Perpetrators who co-operate with the ICRIR will be offered immunity from prosecution which critics have said is a denial of justice for bereaved families.

The government introduced the law in a bid to an attempt to draw a line under the events of the past.

But Lord Hain asked if families denied proper inquests will "have to make do with a vastly inferior process on the cheap?"

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