Veterans Left Exposed by New Legacy Plans in Sordid Backstairs Deal
Repeal of the 2023 Legacy Act and a UK–Ireland ICIR risk lawfare against veterans while historic atrocities go unanswered.
The government’s move to repeal the 2023 Northern Ireland Legacy Act—and replace it with a joint UK–Ireland framework—strips away hard-won protections for soldiers and police who faced down terror.
A Parachute Regiment online magazine, Hermes, cites an interview on 3 November, Shadow Defence Minister Mark Francois alleges a “sordid backstairs deal” with Dublin and Sinn Féin to enable lawfare that recasts IRA terrorists as “freedom fighters” and the British Army as aggressors. Central to the plan is the Independent Commission for Information Retrieval (ICIR), set up by the Irish Government—an organisation with no investigative powers and limited accountability.
“This is lawfare… an attempt to rewrite history—turning the British Army into aggressors and IRA paramilitaries into ‘freedom fighters’.”
Set against historic failures to extradite suspects and decades of cross-border safe havens, critics argue this is sovereignty traded away and veterans sacrificed to appease a political project edging towards Irish unity.
With Remembrance upon us, the question is blunt: why are those who upheld the law now being lined up for show trials while mass-casualty atrocities still lack justice?
Key points
Repeal of the 2023 Legacy Act removes limited safeguards for veterans and police.
The new UK–Ireland ICIR gathers information privately but cannot conduct investigations, raising concerns about accountability.
Francois alleges a political deal with Dublin/Sinn Féin to drive lawfare against veterans.
Historic pattern: cross-border training, bomb-making, and safe havens went largely unchecked.
Families of victims in cases like Kingsmill (1976), Warrenpoint (1979), Enniskillen (1987), Birmingham (1974), Warrington (1993) still lack closure.
Extradition record: over 100 requests, fewer than ten granted, undermining claims of full cooperation.
Critics view the shift as a surrender of sovereignty and a rewriting of history.
It is a total disgrace thats happened to the veterans right now awful
These actions are absolutely disgraceful the veterans were carrying out orders, they were not fighting a recognisable army but terrorists. The people who should be on trial are Tony Blair and his cabinet who gave the orders for any actions that were carried out. Funnily enough they have been decidedly quiet on this matter.