HC Deb 28 February 1972 vol 832 cc42-3W
98. Mrs. Knight

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will now introduce legislation to declare the Irish Republican Army a proscribed organisation in Great Britain.

Mr. Maudling

I am examining all means that might be used to counter the terrorist activities of the I.R.A.

Captain Orr

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will make a statement about the steps he now proposes to take to counter Irish Republican Army terrorism in England, Scotland and Wales.

Mr. Maudling

Appropriate steps are being taken. Their effectiveness would be jeopardised if details were made public.

Captain Orr

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will now introduce legislation to ensure that the Irish Republican Army and similar organisations are declared illegal in Great Britain, as they are in Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic, and to make unlawful the collection of money on behalf of such organisations.

Mr. Maudling

I would refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave today to a Question by my hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Edgbaston (Mrs. Knight).

Mr. Critchley

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he will consider seeking to reactivate the Prevention of Violence (Temporary Provision) Act of 1939 as an aid to the civil power in combating the activities of the Irish Republican Army in the United Kingdom.

Mr. Maudling

I am considering this suggestion among other possibilities.