Inquiry launched into North police ombudsman

Northern Ireland's police ombudsman is to come under the scrutiny of Westminster MPs.

Northern Ireland's police ombudsman is to come under the scrutiny of Westminster MPs.

The Commons Northern Ireland Affairs Committee will consider the performance, efficiency and effectiveness of the office and the Ombudsman Ms Nuala O'Loan.

The committee inquiry will look at progress towards developing a role for the Police Ombudsman since the office was established in November 2000.

The committee, chaired by Conservative MP Michael Mates, invited has individuals or organisations with an interest to submit written evidence to them by late March.

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Meanwhile, the Ombudsman is to investigate the killing of a policewoman more than a decade ago at the request of her family.

The inquiry comes amid claims that Special Branch failed to prevent the attack in which she died.

The Ombudsman's office confirmed it was to investigate the killing of Constable Colleen McMurray who was murdered in an IRA attack on her police vehicle in Newry, Co Down in 1992.

Police informer Kevin Fulton has claimed the constable was murdered, in an attack in which a colleague lost his legs, despite Special Branch having been warned of the impending incident by a British agent.

Democratic Unionist Party MP Jeffrey Donaldson said the family just wanted to know the truth.

He said the Ombudsman was going to look at "what intelligence was made available to the security services prior to the murder and how that intelligence was handled during the police investigation".