§ Mr. SpearingTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport on what basis financial assistance was given to the relations of British nationals in respect of proceedings arising from the Lockerbie air disaster.
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§ Mr. NorrisMy Department agreed to meet the costs of legal representation for the British relatives of victims of the Lockerbie disaster at the fatal accident inquiry into the disaster.
As the then Secretary of State explained to the House on 5 July 1990, this offer reflected the exceptional nature of the disaster—a crime perpetrated by international terrorists which resulted in the destruction of a large passenger aircraft in British airspace. There were therefore very special reasons for departing from the practice that relatives' costs are not met in fatal accident inquiries or inquests.