Statement by Taoiseach Micheál Martin on the agreement of a Joint Framework on addressing legacy of the past

"I welcome that the Irish and British Governments have today published a joint framework on addressing the legacy of the Troubles. The aim of this package of measures is to provide mechanisms for truth, accountability and justice for victims and survivors of the Troubles, and their families.

"In all my engagements with Prime Minister Starmer to date, and before that, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Hilary Benn, we have agreed on the importance of finding a way forward together on this most fundamental, yet unresolved, issue.

"Today marks the start of a new framework of partnership, which recognises the enormity and enduring pain of the legacy of the violence of the Troubles for so many, and our essential responsibility to address that legacy as we work towards truer reconciliation."