The Labour government is generating its fair share of negative headlines these days – and now the focus is on the new Attorney General, Lord Hermer. As Mr S pointed out in summer, Sir Keir Starmer’s appointee has held some rather, er, interesting roles in the past – including representing ex-Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams only last year.
The Irish republican – who has always denied being in the Irish Republican Army, despite numerous books detailing his involvement in its Army Council – is back making British headlines today after it emerged that, due to planned changes to Troubles-related legislation, the former politician could receive a government pay-out over his internment in Maze prison in the 1970s.
In 2020, a Supreme Court judgement ruled that the prison stint had been unlawful as the interim custody order had not been ‘considered personally’ by the then-Northern Ireland Secretary. A clause was then added to the Legacy Act (introduced by the Tories, but which Labour plans to repeal) preventing those in Adams’ position from receiving compensation.
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