O'LOAN DEFENDS REPORT INTO INVESTIGATION
O'Loan defends report into investigation
NORTHERN Ireland police ombudsman Mrs Nuala O'Loan last night defended her report into the Omagh bomb investigation.
Rejecting criticisms from Chief Constable Sir Ronnie Flanagan, Mrs O'Loan called for rigorous investigative procedures to be put in place for the future.
She acknowledged there were disagreements between her findings and the information presented yesterday by the Chief Constable.
"I acknowledged in my report and I do so again that the bombing was a massive atrocity and the responsibility of the RUC/PSNI was awesome.
"It would not have been right of me to minimise or be deflected from making criticism," she said.
Earlier, Northern Ireland Secretary Dr John Reid called for a positive and constructive resolution of the issues raised by Mrs O'Loan's report and the Chief Constable's response.
First and Deputy First Ministers David Trimble and Mark Durkan appealed for people to give the new policing structures time to deal with the Chief Constable's statement.
Mr Trimble urged people not to jump to "negative conclusions" about what the response might be to it on the new Policing Board.
Mr Durkan said the board, Ombudsman and Omagh relatives should be given time to "absorb" the material.
DUP Police Board member Ian Paisley Jr said the appearance of two senior Garda officers alongside Sir Ronnie "sends out a very powerful signal that no matter what police force would have been handling this incident, they would have done exactly what the RUC has done".
Sinn Fein West Tyrone MP Pat Doherty said the whole episode had exposed the failure of the new policing arrangements to provide accountability and freedom from political control.
Police Federation chairman Jimmy Spratt said he was "more than satisfied" the Chief Constable had rebutted the Ombudsman's criticisms.
NORTHERN Ireland police ombudsman Mrs Nuala O'Loan last night defended her report into the Omagh bomb investigation.
Rejecting criticisms from Chief Constable Sir Ronnie Flanagan, Mrs O'Loan called for rigorous investigative procedures to be put in place for the future.
She acknowledged there were disagreements between her findings and the information presented yesterday by the Chief Constable.
"I acknowledged in my report and I do so again that the bombing was a massive atrocity and the responsibility of the RUC/PSNI was awesome.
"It would not have been right of me to minimise or be deflected from making criticism," she said.
Earlier, Northern Ireland Secretary Dr John Reid called for a positive and constructive resolution of the issues raised by Mrs O'Loan's report and the Chief Constable's response.
First and Deputy First Ministers David Trimble and Mark Durkan appealed for people to give the new policing structures time to deal with the Chief Constable's statement.
Mr Trimble urged people not to jump to "negative conclusions" about what the response might be to it on the new Policing Board.
Mr Durkan said the board, Ombudsman and Omagh relatives should be given time to "absorb" the material.
DUP Police Board member Ian Paisley Jr said the appearance of two senior Garda officers alongside Sir Ronnie "sends out a very powerful signal that no matter what police force would have been handling this incident, they would have done exactly what the RUC has done".
Sinn Fein West Tyrone MP Pat Doherty said the whole episode had exposed the failure of the new policing arrangements to provide accountability and freedom from political control.
Police Federation chairman Jimmy Spratt said he was "more than satisfied" the Chief Constable had rebutted the Ombudsman's criticisms.
Further Information
Publisher: NEWS LETTER
Ref: NL/419
Published Date: 25-Jan-02
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