Statement from the Tánaiste on the public inquiry into the Omagh bomb

Everybody in Ireland remembers the horror of that sunny August afternoon in Omagh and today will be another stark reminder of the pain and suffering caused to so many families as the commemorative hearings begin.

Testimony over the coming weeks will be difficult, especially for those who lost loved ones, and for those who responded first as the news broke. But it is important to remind ourselves of the full horror of that brutal attack, to remind ourselves of the purpose of this Inquiry.

When I was Taoiseach, the government took a clear decision to assist the Omagh Inquiry. That commitment was made clear, publicly, at the preliminary hearing on the 30th of July.

The Programme for Government repeats that commitment in no uncertain terms, stating plainly that we will “play our full part in legacy processes…including facilitating and supporting the Omagh Inquiry”.

The cross border nature of the assistance, to an inquiry established under UK law, means that it takes some work to get the details of the mechanisms of cooperation right, but we are actively engaging in this work and we will not be found wanting.