Report of '74 bombings due in autumn

Mr Justice Barron's report into the 1974 Dublin and Monaghan bombings is expected in September, the Taoiseach told the Dáil.

Mr Ahern said the report would then be sent to an Oireachtas committee for consideration. "I am not sure how Mr Justice Barron intends to write up his report," he added.

"I imagine he will try to give as much detail as he can, whether in the form of recommendations or further actions on the manner in which we could proceed."

Replying to a series of questions, he said the delay in the publication of the report could be attributed to the ongoing nature of the deliberations and the difficulties encountered by the British government in acquiring data.

He said that the Irish Government had done everything it could to deal with the issue. There were direct dealings with Mr Justice Barron and the British authorities through the NIO, the British government and its agencies, he added.

"We will have to wait for the report to see if Mr Justice Barron is entirely happy with that co-operation, but no matters are currently outstanding at this stage," he added.

"This is not to say that Mr Justice Barron got everything he wanted as that might be an over-optimistic assessment."

The Fine Gael leader, Mr Enda Kenny, said it was probably difficult for anybody in the House, or for their predecessors, to appreciate the pain that lingered among the members of the Justice for the Forgotten group who did not know what had happened to their loved ones.

Mr Ahern said the Government had undertaken a long process of trying to get additional information from various sources within the British establishment.

That had been completed, and Mr Justice Barron would make his views known on whether it was entirely satisfactory. He said he would not reopen the issue.