Former armed forces minister Al Carns has sharply criticized the government's Troubles legacy bill, calling it "unfit for purpose" and citing his opposition as a key reason for resigning on Thursday.
In his resignation letter to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, Carns stated that he "worked to fix the bill from the inside" but it "remains unfit for purpose" and "risks failing the very veterans it claims to protect."
A Northern Ireland Office spokesperson countered that the bill is a "vital step in righting the wrongs of the flawed Legacy Act" which "left veterans exposed to a legal wild west."
Carns criticized the government's approach, saying "the instinct that serious problems can be managed rather than faced runs through the Northern Ireland Legacy Bill." He revealed that his proposed changes were rejected.
"I set out changes I believed were necessary and the lines which I could not in good conscience go beyond. Those lines have not been accepted," he wrote. "I have run out of room to argue this case honourably from inside government."
He added: "A serving minister cannot ask fellow veterans to trust a process he no longer trusts himself."
Carns also voiced concerns about insufficient government investment in the armed forces: "We ask soldiers to fight for this country. In return we owe them the kit to do the job and the loyalty to stand by them when it's done. We are failing on both."
TUV leader Jim Allister welcomed Carns' comments, saying "Al Carns exposed what many veterans in Northern Ireland have been saying for years." Allister noted that Carns had warned the proposed bill "is creating a hierarchy of truth in Northern Ireland."
The Northern Ireland Office has been asked for a response to Carns' criticisms.
The 2023 Legacy Act, introduced by the previous Conservative government, offered conditional immunity for perpetrators of some Troubles' crimes in exchange for co-operation with a new body, the Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery. The Labour government has since introduced a new bill in parliament, with MPs voting to repeal the conditional immunity provision. The new plan includes a legacy commission, a dedicated legacy unit within An Garda Síochána, and a package of protections for veterans.
An NIO spokesperson added that the government has "listened closely to the concerns of Armed Forces associations" and will "shortly bring forward a substantial package of amendments to further bolster these protections." They stressed that "suggestions that veterans will be dragged through the courts are simply wrong" and that "our Armed Forces have always been bound by the rule of law, and those who served honourably and followed the rules have absolutely nothing to fear."