The Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023 (Remedial) Order 2025
373
Ayes
—
106
Noes
Passed · Government won
173 did not vote
Analysis
Commons
Commons
**What happened**: On 21 January 2026, the House of Commons voted to approve the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023 (Remedial) Order 2025, a statutory instrument laid before Parliament on 14 October 2025. The motion passed by 373 votes to 106. The order was moved by Hilary Benn, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, on behalf of the government. **Why it matters**: The remedial order addresses specific provisions of the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023 -- passed by the previous Conservative government -- that were found by the courts to be incompatible with UK human rights law. In a case known as Dillon, both the High Court and the Belfast Court of Appeal ruled that parts of the Act, in particular its conditional immunity scheme and restrictions on other legal processes, breached human rights obligations. The order removes those incompatible provisions, restoring some legal routes for victims and families of the Troubles -- a conflict in which over 3,500 people lost their lives. The government described the order as a first step in a broader process of reform. **The politics**: The vote divided sharply along party lines. All 272 Labour MPs voting, along with Liberal Democrats, the Greens, the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland, and the SDLP, backed the order. All 90 Conservatives voting opposed it, joined by the five Democratic Unionist Party MPs, five Reform UK MPs, and two independents. The Conservatives, who originally passed the 2023 Act, argued the order undermines protections for veterans who served during the Troubles. The DUP also expressed deep concern about the impact on veterans. The vote sits within a broader government effort to reshape Northern Ireland legacy policy, with related divisions on the Victims and Courts Bill following in March 2026.
Voting Aye meant
Support passing the Remedial Order to bring the Troubles Legacy Act into compliance with human rights law, maintaining a reformed framework for dealing with the legacy of the Northern Ireland Troubles
Voting No meant
Oppose the Remedial Order, either because it does not go far enough in addressing human rights concerns, because it still undermines victims' rights and access to justice, or because of broader opposition to the Legacy Act framework
479 voting MPs. Each dot is one vote; left-to-right by party. Grey dots in the centre are the 173 who did not vote.
Aye
No
Absent
Labour PartyWhipped Aye
272
0
90
Conservative and Unionist PartyWhipped No
0
90
26
Liberal DemocratsWhipped Aye
60
0
12
Labour and Co-operative PartyWhipped Aye
31
0
11
Independent
2
2
9
Scottish National Party
0
0
9
Reform UKWhipped No
0
5
3
Sinn Féin
0
0
7
Democratic Unionist PartyWhipped No
0
5
—
Green Party of England and WalesWhipped Aye
4
0
—
Plaid Cymru
0
0
4
Social Democratic and Labour Party
1
0
1
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
1
0
—
Speaker
0
0
1
Traditional Unionist Voice
0
1
—
Ulster Unionist Party
0
1
—
Your Party
1
0
—
The remedial order is necessary to remove unlawful immunity provisions and restore civil claims access, building trust for a fair legacy process compliant with human rights obligations.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (5,487 words) →
The Government had other options including appealing to the Supreme Court or waiting for its ruling; proceeding now is legally questionable (ultra vires) and morally inconsistent given Labour's past support for conditional immunity.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (3,979 words) →
The remedial order correctly removes unlawful immunity and restores justice routes; veterans never wanted immunity but fairness under universal legal standards, which accountability strengthens.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (676 words) →
The remedial order is necessary to comply with human rights law and court rulings; immunity was corrosive and wrongly extended to terrorists, but further amendments are needed in the Bill to protect veterans from disproportionate action.Liberal Democrat · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,351 words) →
The remedial order will enable asymmetric lawfare against veterans while IRA sympathisers weaponise a flawed 'victim' definition that includes convicted terrorists; primary legislation was constitutionally proper.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (2,304 words) →
The Government's reliance on a technical argument (declaration remains while appeal pending) to bypass section 10 requirements is legally unmeritorious and undermines the substance of ongoing Supreme Court deliberations.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (165 words) →
The Joint Committee on Human Rights, while noting the unusual simultaneity of remedial order and Bill, endorsed the order as addressing genuine incompatibilities and building trust in Northern Ireland's legacy process.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,670 words) →
The Government's framing creates false equivalence; the 1998 Good Friday agreement already established equivalence before the law through early release schemes, so the 2023 Act did not initiate this.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (1,027 words) →
Sources
Division dataUK Parliament Votes API
DebateHansard · Commons
Stance analysisAI analysis · Claude 4.x
LicenceOpen Parliament Licence v3.0