Restore pledges to end "endless reinvestigations" of soldiers as Troubles Bill nears end of Commons stages

Restore Britain has pledged to end what it called "the endless reinvestigations of lawful operational service" by members of the armed forces.

The party wrote on X at 15:36 BST on Monday 19th October: "Soldiers are sent to do an exceptionally dangerous job, and are then left in legal limbo for years over split second decisions made under fire.

"A Restore Britain Government will end the endless reinvestigations of lawful operational service.

"Battlefield decisions taken in good faith must be judged by the realities of war, not by civilian hindsight.

"We will protect those who protect us."

The post did not say how a Restore government would do this, which conflicts or cases it would cover, or what would happen to investigations already under way.

The army and the public

The pledge follows comments from the head of the army, General Sir Roly Walker, who told around 700 soldiers at Catterick Garrison that political leaders would soon start "a frank conversation" with the public, Sky News reported on Friday 16th October. "Our citizens have got to consent to sacrifices to prioritise defence and security," he said.

An Ipsos poll of 1,090 British adults, carried out between 29th September and 1st October and reported by Sky News, found:

- Half of adults said there were no circumstances in which they would go to war for Britain.

- 51% backed an increase in defence spending, up from 28% in June 2022.

- Among men, 48% said there were circumstances in which they would fight, and 40% said they would not.

At 15:38 BST on Saturday 17th October, Rupert Lowe wrote on X: "Why would young white British lads fight for a state that so obviously despises them?"

Background: Northern Ireland

Restore's post came as MPs debated the government's Northern Ireland Troubles Bill. The Bill would replace the Conservative government's 2023 Legacy Act, which the BBC reports banned inquests and civil actions over Troubles-era incidents. The Act's offer of conditional immunity from prosecution was disapplied after the courts found it unlawful, according to the BBC.

The government has tabled amendments to the Bill which it says include "protection from repeated investigations, protection from cold calling" and recognition of "the operational context" in which security forces served. Under the changes, the Attorney General would have to consent to "serious" Troubles-related prosecutions, the BBC reported.

The government said the Bill was "expected to conclude its passage through the House of Commons" on Tuesday 20th October, before going to the House of Lords.

Northern Ireland Secretary Sir Chris Bryant told BBC News NI it was "completely wrong" to call the changes an amnesty. Sinn Féin has called them a "veterans' charter", while some MPs have previously argued that the protections for veterans do not go far enough, the BBC reported. Mark Thompson of the victims' group Relatives for Justice said on the BBC's Sunday Politics programme that he feared the Bill could lead to unlawful killings being covered up by the state. Philip Barden, a lawyer who has represented former soldiers, told the BBC that veterans' "primary cause of concern" was repeated investigations without new evidence.

Background: overseas operations

For service outside the UK, the Overseas Operations (Service Personnel and Veterans) Act 2021 already sets a presumption that, once five years have passed since the alleged conduct, prosecution should be "exceptional".

Separately, an independent statutory inquiry chaired by Lord Justice Haddon-Cave has been examining the deployment of British special forces to Afghanistan between mid-2010 and mid-2013. The government set it up on 15th December 2022, according to the inquiry.

The main points

- Restore Britain says it would end "endless reinvestigations" of lawful military service, but has not said how.

- The government's Troubles Bill, which includes new protections for veterans, is due to finish its Commons stages on Tuesday 20th October, according to the government.

- Sinn Féin and the victims' group Relatives for Justice have criticised the changes, while some MPs have argued that protections for veterans do not go far enough, the BBC reports.

- A 2021 law already limits prosecutions for overseas operations after five years, except in exceptional cases.

Image: ArildV, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons