Press Releases19 Nov 09

Standing Committee Ratifies Working Group's Response to NIO Consultation on the Consultative Group on the Past Report

The Standing Committee of the Church of Ireland this week (17th November 2009) ratified the response of the Church’s Consultative Group on the Past Working Group to the Northern Ireland Office consultation on the recommendations of the Consultative Group on the Past. The Standing Committee also agreed to make the submission available: it can be read at www.ireland.anglican.org/officialsubmissions.

The Chairman of the Working Group, the Rt Revd Dr Michael Jackson, Bishop of Clogher, said, ‘The process of engaging with the Report’s recommendations and the Secretary of State’s consultation was stimulating although some of the questions were also hard to address. As a group, we kept to the forefront the reality of the continuing suffering of those who are victims of the Troubles. Our response reflects the need for realism, urgency and a time frame for implementation.’ He continued, ‘We worked in partnership with those who were instrumental in our “Hard Gospel” project and on our current “Hard Gospel Implementation Group” as well as with the cross-community organization “Healing Through Remembering”.

The response states, ‘The Church is ready to make an ongoing contribution where it can helpfully do so in terms of the proposals that will emerge from the consultation.’ (Q.15, p.50)