The MI5, the RUC and the London Metropolitan Police today came out against conducting a large-scale trawl of their intelligence files for the Saville inquiry.
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The three organisations announced through barrister Philip Sales the exercise proposed by lawyers for the soldiers who opened fire in Derry 29 years ago would force the inquiry to break off and was highly unlikely to produce anything of use to it.
The troops' legal representatives, led by Gerald Elias QC and David Lloyd-Jones QC, want background material about witnesses at the inquiry. They also want to see information on file about the workings of the IRA at that time and its plans for the day as well as anything which may help the inquiry trace people with information about the IRA.
Addressing a third day of special hearings into the subject at the Guildhall Mr Sales said Mr Elias's proposal "could not be consistently or indeed sensibly be implemented by the agencies".
Mr Sales added: "His suggestion would necessarily imply that lawyers for the inquiry should break off now and read through the agencies' various multifarious archives on the chance that something may turn up.
"We say this would be a fishing exercise on a grand scale. Meanwhile it is difficult to see how the inquiry, without its counsel, could sensibly proceed."
The proposals if adopted "would undermine the central objectives of the inquiry and not advance them."
PA