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Sinn Féin leader A pilot program
Mary Lou McDonald warned No More British Soldiers to rapid test an entire IRISH
the cut in the pandemic unem- rural village for Covid-19
ployment payment (PUP) will each week has com-
lead to economic hardship, To Be Prosecuted For menced in Co EXAMINER
calling for the Government to Roscommon.
reverse the reduction. The testing system, |
The €350-a-week pay- Bloody Sunday Actions involving a nasal swab with
ments have dropped to a blood test for antibodies,
between €200 and €300, makes results available September
which has affected the within 15 minutes and will
150,000 people still in receipt be available for less than
of the benefit. €20, according to the 30th,
According to The Sunday Roscommon Herald. 2020
Times, senior ministers are The program is being
also to consider whether stu- run by Irish company the
dents returning to school and Roqu group, who say the
college should still be eligible same testing system is cur-
for the PUP payment, with an rently in place at Frankfurt,
estimated 30,000 students Rome and Dusseldorf air-
qualifying for the payment ports.
back in March. Speaking on RTÉ Radio
Ms McDonald said that One’s Brendan O’Connor
Minister for Finance Paschal show on Monday morning,
Donohoe will have to reverse chief executive of the Roqu
the decision to decrease the group Robert Quirke said
payment amount, saying it o further former families of those killed and cient to provide a reasonable that they “had a tremen-
prospect of conviction of any
injured on Bloody Sunday to
British soldiers will
was wrong, particularly when Nbe prosecuted over explain the reasons why the of the 15 soldiers who were dous day on Friday” when
Dublin and Donegal are fac- the killing of 13 civilians in original decision-maker con- the subjects of the reviews. testing commenced.
ing tighter restrictions. Derry in 1972. cluded that the available evi- “Accordingly, the decisions Mr Quirke said that Co
“I think he will have to Northern Ireland’s Public dence did not meet the Test not to prosecute these 15 indi- Roscommon had an ageing
change his mind because Prosecution Service (PPS) for Prosecution for all but one viduals all stand.” population and that in some
they’ve made a mistake, announced last year that one suspect reported,” Ms. Ms. O’Kane added: “I know cases, whole generations
because what they’re doing is veteran, known as Soldier F, O’Kane said. that today’s outcome will lived under the same roof.
He said that the testing
unfair, because what they’re would face charges. “Given the importance of cause further upset to those program would help allevi-
doing will undoubtedly cause A further 15 civilians were these decisions to all affected who have pursued a long and ate anxiety in the village as
not just hardship, but what wounded on January 30th, by them, and the extensive determined journey for jus- many vulnerable people
MABS (Money Advice and 1972 when soldiers from the public interest in the events of tice over almost five decades. currently felt afraid and
Budgeting Service) has Parachute Regiment opened Bloody Sunday, the deep dis- “I can only offer reassur- unable to leave their house
described as a forthcoming fire on civil rights demonstra- appointment felt by many ance to all of the families and or go to local shops due to
tsunami of domestic debt,” tors, in an incident which families at that time was victims of Bloody Sunday, and the risk of Covid-19.
she told RTÉ’s The Week In became known as Bloody wholly understandable. the wider community, that Mr Quirke said the test-
“This was despite assur-
Politics. Sunday. ances received from the PPS my decisions were conducted ing system was in use in 60
wholly independently and
Families of some of the vic-
“That’s not a smart thing to countries and has been
do socially or economically so tims requested a review of the that its decision-making had impartially, and in accordance “validated at 97 per cent
Code
for
the
been conducted in an inde-
with
PPS decision in March 2019.
Paschal will have to change Today the PPS announced pendent, fair and impartial Prosecutors.” accuracy”.
his position because it’s the that the original decision not manner. Soldier F has been charged The HSE is involved in
wrong position.” to prosecute 15 soldiers “It was therefore also with the murder of James the monitoring and super-
McDonald rejected reported in connection with understandable that a number Wray and William McKinney. vising of the Co
Donohoe’s claim that the the events of Bloody Sunday of the bereaved families and He is also accused of the Roscommon project, how-
Government cut the unem- have been upheld. injured victims subsequently attempted murders of Patrick ever, it has not financially
ployment payments so they The reviews were under- exercised their right to O’Donnell, Joseph Friel, Joe invested.
could last longer for people. taken by PPS senior assistant request a review of decisions Mahon and Michael Quinn. The entire pilot project
“I think the very reason to director Marianne O’Kane, relating to 15 of those sus- He faces a seventh supporting involves 12 organizations,
extend and to maintain the who was not previously pects originally reported. charge of the attempted mur- including two secondary
payments is the fact that we involved in the cases. “The reviews process der of a person or persons schools, Tallaght Hospital
are still in the grips of a crisis,” In a statement the PPS said began substantively in unknown on the day. and a chauffeur firm.
she added. Ms. O’Kane concluded that November 2019, after receipt Ms. O’Kane said there will However, also speaking
“If we thought initially six the Test for Prosecution is not of all legal submissions, and be no change to those to RTÉ Radio One, infec-
months ago that this was a met on evidential grounds to involved applying the Test for charges. prosecution that tious diseases consultant
prosecute any of the 15 sol-
“The
Prosecution afresh to all avail-
transient crisis, that we could diers in connection with the able evidence submitted by commenced against him in Professor Sam McConkey
tough it out for six months and specific deaths or injuries sus- the Police Service of Northern 2019, which relates to two warned that a test being
then we could go all come tained on January 30th 1972. Ireland (PSNI) from 2016-17. charges of murder and five used “here and there” is no
back up and breathe air that’s “In March 2019, the PPS “I have concluded that the charges of attempted murder, guarantee “that it actually
wrong.” C engaged extensively with the available evidence is insuffi- continues,” she said. C works well”. C

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