HOW THAT OMAGH BILL MIGHT BE SHARED OUT
How that Omagh bill might be shared out
By Ben Lowry
"We had put up a strong case for financial support � Michael McKevitt's conviction drew attention to the fact that two dissident terrorists had been granted legal aid and the families had not." Michael Gallagher
RELATIVES of the Omagh bomb victims will meet two Government ministers in the town tomorrow, to discuss the offer to fund their civil action against five Real IRA suspects.
The fine print of the proposed financial support will be outlined, including what will happen if the bill rises beyond the anticipated �800,000.
NIO security minister Jane Kennedy and Lord Filkin, of the Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA), will travel to Co Tyrone for the meeting. The families have raised �1.2m towards the legal bill, but an estimated �800,000 more is needed.
After months of consultation with the DCA, Secretary of State Paul Murphy confirmed on Friday that the Government had found a way to help the relatives pay the total bill.
A spokeswoman for the DCA said today that the �800,000 figure was based on the estimates of the lawyers working on behalf of the families. "At the moment, that is the sum we are talking about. It is based on what that the solicitors say that they will need, over and above what the families have raised for themselves."
A Northern Ireland Office spokesman said: "We will want to discuss the details with the families before making them public."
Michael Gallagher, whose 21-year-old son Aidan was among the 29 people killed in the 1998 atrocity, said: "We do not know what the final bill will be but I hope the Government will fund the families to whatever is needed to bring the case.
"At tomorrow's meeting, we will work out the fine details of how the funding will actually be managed."
Mr Gallagher said that news of the funding came "completely out of the blue" on Friday.
"We had put up a strong case for financial support � Michael McKevitt's conviction drew attention to the fact that two dissident terrorists had been granted legal aid and the families had not," he said.
He added: "The relatives had a good week last week � I hope that the tide has finally turned."
By Ben Lowry
"We had put up a strong case for financial support � Michael McKevitt's conviction drew attention to the fact that two dissident terrorists had been granted legal aid and the families had not." Michael Gallagher
RELATIVES of the Omagh bomb victims will meet two Government ministers in the town tomorrow, to discuss the offer to fund their civil action against five Real IRA suspects.
The fine print of the proposed financial support will be outlined, including what will happen if the bill rises beyond the anticipated �800,000.
NIO security minister Jane Kennedy and Lord Filkin, of the Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA), will travel to Co Tyrone for the meeting. The families have raised �1.2m towards the legal bill, but an estimated �800,000 more is needed.
After months of consultation with the DCA, Secretary of State Paul Murphy confirmed on Friday that the Government had found a way to help the relatives pay the total bill.
A spokeswoman for the DCA said today that the �800,000 figure was based on the estimates of the lawyers working on behalf of the families. "At the moment, that is the sum we are talking about. It is based on what that the solicitors say that they will need, over and above what the families have raised for themselves."
A Northern Ireland Office spokesman said: "We will want to discuss the details with the families before making them public."
Michael Gallagher, whose 21-year-old son Aidan was among the 29 people killed in the 1998 atrocity, said: "We do not know what the final bill will be but I hope the Government will fund the families to whatever is needed to bring the case.
"At tomorrow's meeting, we will work out the fine details of how the funding will actually be managed."
Mr Gallagher said that news of the funding came "completely out of the blue" on Friday.
"We had put up a strong case for financial support � Michael McKevitt's conviction drew attention to the fact that two dissident terrorists had been granted legal aid and the families had not," he said.
He added: "The relatives had a good week last week � I hope that the tide has finally turned."
Further Information
Publisher: BELFAST TELEGRAPH
Ref: BT/0902
Published Date: 12-Aug-03
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