The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Baroness Chapman of Darlington) (Lab)

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord, Lord Caine, for his Question. On 11 July, the Northern Ireland Court of Appeal delivered its judgment on the previous Government’s appeal against the Northern Ireland High Court’s judgment in the case of the death of Patrick Finucane. The Court of Appeal dismissed the previous Government’s appeal, finding that there still has not been an Article 2-compliant investigation into the death of Mr Finucane. The Secretary of State met Mrs Geraldine Finucane and her family in Belfast to hear her views first hand on the circumstances surrounding the appalling murder of her husband and to discuss next steps for responding to the court’s judgment. The Secretary of State wants to ensure that the Government make a decision about the way forward on this case as soon as possible and that this decision takes account of the views of Mrs Finucane. As part of this, the Secretary of State has asked the Northern Ireland Office to examine the options available regarding the establishment of an Article 2-compliant investigation into the death of Mr Finucane. The Government will provide further information on their response to the court in due course and are happy to commit today to update Parliament via an Oral Statement when a decision has been made.