Relatives of people killed in the McGurk’s Bar atrocity have voiced concerns that the new Labour-led British government may not reinstate all abandoned legacy inquests.
Fifteen people were killed when the UVF detonated a bomb in the North Queen Street bar in north Belfast in December 1971.
At the time security forces blamed the IRA but this was later shown not to be true.
Campaigners believe there was collusion in the murders and that attempts were subsequently made to mislead the public.
An inquest into the atrocity was ordered before the Tory party’s controversial Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023 came into force in May.
The contentious legacy law ended all inquests and civil cases.
Just days before the deadline Attorney General Brenda King ordered a new inquest into the McGurk’s Bar atrocity.
A total of 38 Troubles’ inquests linked to 76 deaths were scrapped when the Legacy Act came into force.
Official figures show that 14 inquests, dealing with 32 deaths, that were under way by that date were cut short.
Four inquests dealing with five deaths were never even allocated to a coroner before the deadline.
Officials said at the time that 20 new inquest referrals from the Attorney General, focusing on 39 deaths, were also impacted.
While the British government has committed to “proposing new measures which allow for previously halted inquests to proceed” it is not clear if this includes inquests granted but not started before the deadline.
Responsibility for investigating Trouble cases has now transferred to the controversial Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery (ICRIR).
Many victims and relatives are strongly opposed to the commission, believing it to be part of British government attempts to protect state players from accountability.
Last month the Court of Appeal in Belfast found that the commission is incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) in respect of the power held by the Secretary of State to withhold sensitive information from families.
While Secretary of State Hilary Benn has pledged to repeal and replace the act, he has said the ICRIR will be retained.
Campaigner Pat Irvine, whose mother Kathleen was killed at McGurk’s Bar, believes the case was the first involving collusion.
Ms Irvine said the prospect that some inquests may not go ahead was “horrendous”.
“We have battled medical and physical ailments throughout all this,” she said.
“It has affected each and every one of us deeply.
“Our children are now going over the same thing and our grandchildren.
“How long is this going to go on for?”
She also referred to a report into the McGurk’s Bar atrocity carried out by the now defunct Historical Enquiries Team, which concluded there was no evidence of any bias on the part of the RUC investigators.
In 2022 the High Court in Belfast quashed that report.
She said she has little faith in the ICRIR.
Asked if the British government intends to resume all inquests halted as a result of the act a spokesman for the NIO said the Secretary of State “has committed to proposing new measures which allow for previously halted inquests to proceed”.
The spokesman did not mention inquests that were granted but had not commenced.
He added that a consultation was currently underway “to hear the views of all interested parties regarding a practical way forward on legacy issues..”
Kevin Winters, of KRW Law said
“As one of the longest running legal battles an inquest would really help deliver much long over due justice.”
