Part of Orders of the Day — Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Bill – in the House of Commons am 4:39 pm ar 20 Mehefin 1991.
On 17 January, in Committee, I announced that the Government were considering whether it would be possible to introduce an independent element into the complaints procedure relating to Her Majesty's forces. I returned to the subject on Report, and announced that the Government had decided to accept Lord Colville's recommendation that we should consider the appointment of some independent outside person to carry out on a continuing basis an audit of the way in which armed forces complaints procedures are operating. I also said that the necessary provisions would be brought forward in another place. The new clause and its associated schedule give effect to that undertaking.
The new clause would require the Secretary of State to appoint an independent assessor of military complaints procedures in Northern Ireland. It also outlines the independent assessor's functions in some detail. The assessor would be required to keep under review the procedures adopted by the General Officer Commanding Northern Ireland for receiving, investigating and responding to non-criminal complaints relating to the behaviour of members of the armed forces under his command. The assessor would be required to receive and investigate any representations concerning those procedures. He may also investigate the operation of those complaints procedures in relation to any particular complaint or group of complaints. He may require the General Officer Commanding Northern Ireland to review any particular case or group of cases in which he considers any of the procedures to have operated inadequately; and he may make recommendations to the General Officer Commanding concerning any inadequacies in the procedures.
The assessor has not been given any role in relation to complaints of criminal misconduct by the armed forces. Allegations of criminal misconduct by the armed forces are, and will remain, subject to independent investigation by the Royal Ulster Constabulary.
I have listened carefully to what the hon. Member for Kingston upon Hull, North (Mr. McNamara) said in moving amendment (a), but I have to tell the House that the Government do not support it. The hon. Gentleman criticised the fact that the assessor has not been empowered directly to investigate the substance of non-criminal complaints. The purpose of his amendment is to give the assessor such a role. But the Government do not support giving such a role to the assessor, and I should like to explain why.
First, I ask hon. Members to note that the Government have done exactly what Lord Colville recommended. I refer the House to paragraph 5.25 of Lord Colville's report, where he refers to the appointment of independent outside persons
who carry out an audit of the way in which complaints procedures are operating".
Lord Colville goes on to say:
… such persons do not perform a reappraisal of any individual complaint investigation on its merits, but undertake a survey of the effectiveness of the machinery. They have generous access to files, can accept complaints about the procedure from anyone aggrieved, exercise a general oversight and usually publish an annual Report.
That is exactly what the Government have provided in the new clause.