NORTHERN SECRETARY Owen Paterson has announced he will shortly decide whether or not an inquiry will be held into the murder of Belfast solicitor Pat Finucane.
Mr Paterson met Geraldine Finucane and her son John on Monday to discuss the family’s continuing call for an unimpeded official inquiry into the February 1989 UDA murder of Mr Finucane.
Investigations have already found there was official collusion with the UDA in Mr Finucane’s killing.
The British government promised an official inquiry into the controversial killing in 2004 but the family was unhappy, contending that the terms of the inquiry meant that the full truth about the murder could not emerge.
Mr Paterson said yesterday he would take representations on the case over the next two months and then decide whether an inquiry would be held.
In reaching his decision he would also take into account a number of other factors including the commitment already given to the family, the affects of the delay since 2004, political developments since then and the “potential cost of any inquiry and the current pressures on the UK government’s finances”.
One official source said that the meeting with Mrs Finucane was “good” and “positive”.