asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he will make a statement on the incursion of the British army near Castleblayney, County Monaghan, on 18th October; and the action he has taken in the matter.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - British Army Incursion.
24.
On the afternoon of 18th October, according to my information, a number of British soldiers entered the State near Longfield, County Monaghan in pursuit of some man whom they wished to question. They took possession of two privately-owned vehicles within the State and travelled to a depth of two miles inside the State before returning across the Border.
Within hours of the incursion, the matter was taken up with the British authorities. I myself expressed the Government's concern at the incident to the British ambassador, who has conveyed the regrets of his authorities that the incursion should have taken place. The British authorities have also expressed regret that local residents should have been alarmed by the presence of British troops in their area.
I have written to the local residents most directly concerned to convey these regrets and have assured them that if they wish to raise with me any further aspects of the incident, these will be examined with a view to determining whether any further action can usefully be undertaken by my Department on their behalf.
Will the Minister state if he has had a reply to the representations made?
As I stated in my reply, the British ambassador expressed the regrets of his authorities that the incursion should have taken place.
That is all?
As far as I am aware there is no issue of compensation for damage. If there were, or if it transpires that there is at this stage——
The purpose of my question was to ascertain if the investigation revealed that the incursion was accidental.
The investigation indicated to me that the incident began accidentally but it is not clear what happened afterwards. The fact is that the British troops landed from a helicopter in a field beside the Border. They saw a man disappearing northwards and, because of their unfamiliarity with the geography they say they moved northwards after him thinking that the road was into Northern Ireland. It happened that it was into the Republic. However, that does not excuse or adequately explain the subsequent incident.
Has the Minister got a guarantee or assurance that such mistakes or whatever happened will not recur?
In the nature of things I do not think it is possible to get a guarantee that something will never happen again. The British authorities are very much aware that when something happens which may have been accidental—if it was accidental—and which is followed by the events that subsequently occurred it must be a matter of grave concern to us that such incidences could occur in our State. They are incidences which we could reasonably deplore taking place on the other side of the Border if they had happened there.
Surely they should be able to clarify once and for all whether it was accidental? The Minister does not know because obviously they have not conveyed to him if it was accidental.
The British authorities conveyed to me that the incursion was accidental. They gave circumstantial grounds, which I found fairly convincing, for the initial incursion being accidental. It was alleged at the time that some of the people concerned told the British soldiers they were in the Republic and they do not seem to have reacted very sensibly to that information.