No collusion in Castlereagh break-in says Murphy

Northern Ireland Secretary of State Paul Murphy has said that a review into last year's break-in at a police station in Belfast did not uncover any evidence that workers with government agencies were involved.

The report by Sir John Chilcot is one of two investigations into the incident in which an officer was assaulted and sensitive documents stolen during the raid at Special Branch offices at Castlereagh police station on 17 March 2002.

In a written ministerial statement to Parliament on Wednesday, Mr Murphy confirmed "that the review did not uncover any evidence whatever that members of government agencies were in any way involved in this incident".

However, Mr Murphy's decision not to publish the full findings of Sir John's report was criticised by UUP Policing spokesperson, Fred Cobain. He said: “It is all very well for the Secretary of State to pronounce that there was no rogue Government agent collusion in the break in at Castlereagh break-in, but why the veil of secrecy?

"Why not put the report into the public domain? This selective drip-feeding of the Chilcot Report is unacceptable.

“What we need from the Secretary of State in clear and transparent terms are explanations as to how the most sensitive Government building in Northern Ireland was broken into so easily, why the surveillance cameras were dysfunctional and why, over a year after the event, we are still waiting for a full police investigation into the matter.”

Echoing these views, the SDLP's Alex Attwood said Mr Murphy needed to confirm if the Chilcot review had recommended a larger role for MI5 in Northern Ireland.

He added: "The British Government should come clean on whatever it is that Chilcot has or has not recommended.

"The SDLP has alone has repeatedly told the British Government and Chilcot that the party fundamentally opposed a growing MI5 role in Northern Ireland.

"The British Government must not entertain an enlarged MI5 role," he warned.

Sir John Chilcot, a former senior civil servant, was asked to assess if there had been any damage to national security following last year's incident.

The police investigation into the break-in is continuing.

(MB)