§ Mr. GapesTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many IRA-related terrorist incidents there have been in(a) Northern Ireland, (b) the rest of the United Kingdom and (c) the Irish Republic in 1996; and if he will make a statement. [35399]
§ Sir John WheelerIt is difficult sometimes to be certain whether any particular incident is terrorist-related and therefore it is not possible to give precise figures. However, the seven bombs in London and Manchester, the mortar attack on the British Army base in Osnabruck, the murder of Garda McCabe in the Republic of Ireland and the increasingly horrific nature and number of beatings and robberies in Northern Ireland are profoundly evil, wicked and incompatible with democracy. They will not deflect us from the search for a democratically agreed political settlement in which we are engaged with other participants in the current negotiations.