§ Mr. PrescottTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will call for a report from the Chief Constable of the Royal Ulster Constabulary on the incident on the vessel Saga Moon in the port of Belfast, on 14 March; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Stanley[holding answer 28 March 1988]: No. The officers involved in the alleged incident on the Saga Moon were members of the Belfast harbour police and as such do not come under the jurisdiction of the Chief Constable of the RUC.
706Wthe manner in which they were defective in each case, and whether the persons being sought were to be charged with terrorist-type activity.
§ Mr. Stanley[holding answer 29 March 1988]: As I indicated to the hon. Gentleman on 9 February, at column 165, it would not be in the public interest to give details of individual cases prior to Irish court proceedings, Furthermore, it must be remembered that an extradition application can consist of many individual warrants and be the subject of extensive discussion with the Irish authorities.
Against this background, the available information is as follows: