§ 3. Mr. John Baron (Billericay)If he will make a statement about progress on decommissioning. [25593]
§ The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (Dr. John Reid)The Government are committed to seeing all illegally held weapons put permanently and verifiably beyond use. As the commission has reported, it will pursue its mandate, which is the decommissioning of all paramilitary arms.
§ Mr. BaronI thank the Secretary of State for that response. Given that the Government have shamefully further appeased terrorists by allowing them another five years to decommission, and given that violence continues, 282 will he accept that there needs to be far greater transparency in the decommissioning process to boost morale and confidence in the flagging peace process?
§ Dr. ReidIt is a bit of a tragedy that the Conservatives are reverting to type on this issue. There may be legitimate questions and arguments on all these issues, but to see every compromise necessary to put an end to the longest running dispute in British history as merely appeasement or a concession is to make cheap political points when we need statesmanship and leadership.
We want to see and will continue to press for the decommissioning of all paramilitary weapons, including those of the Irish Republican Army. The hon. Gentleman should not diminish the historic significance of the decommissioning that has already taken place.
On the methodology, it would be better to leave that to the integrity of General John de Chastelain, who operates under the statute, the remit and the modus operandi that were agreed by the House of Commons.
§ Lembit Öpik (Montgomeryshire)Accepting that the Unionist section of the community in Northern Ireland feels that various concessions, with which I agree, towards republican paramilitaries are a bridge too far, may I ask the Secretary of State what assurance he can give that he will take specific measures to build confidence in the Unionist community? He could, for example, provide an assurance that anybody who is on the run and has yet to be tried will not be given an unconditional amnesty, but will have to face a trial, whether or not they are subsequently released on licence.
§ Dr. ReidThe best assurance that can be given to any member of the Unionist community, which by definition has as its principal objective the union of Northern Ireland and the United Kingdom, is the democratic consensus, which is now accepted by everyone, and that the future constitutional status of Northern Ireland will be in the hands of the people of Northern Ireland. That is not a concession to Unionism but a democratic right. On the anomalies arising from the release of paramilitary prisoners, which we have pledged to resolve, when we have concrete proposals on that, we will of course bring them to the House.