The Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill has already been approved by MPs and is currently before the House of Lords, with report stage expected to proceed later this month.

The bill has been widely criticised by the Law Society of Northern Ireland, Northern Ireland political parties, the Irish government, the Council of Europe, Amnesty International and Westminster’s joint committee on human rights as failing to fulfil the UK’s obligations under international human rights law.

The Council of Europe’s committee of ministers this week again criticised the bill for its incompatibility with the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), including its proposed conditional immunity scheme.

The new amendments address one of the committee’s criticisms by allowing ongoing criminal investigations, inquests, the consideration of prosecution decisions and the publication of reports to continue until May 2024 as part of a “transition” to the new Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery (ICRIR).

Northern Ireland secretary Chris Heaton-Harris MP said: “The government has consistently stated that it would continue constructive dialogue in order to alleviate concerns and strengthen the bill. That is why we have published a number of significant amendments that directly address a number of key concerns raised by interested parties.

“This includes amendments on the conduct of reviews, compliance with Convention Rights, the independence of the Commission, conditional immunity, and ongoing legal processes.

“We remain absolutely committed to making legislative progress so that the [ICRIR] can be established, and begin delivering better outcomes for those most affected by the Troubles, as swiftly as possible.”

However, Grainne Teggart, Amnesty International UK’s Northern Ireland deputy director, said: “The UK government is treating Troubles victims with contempt — these amendments do nothing to address the fundamental flaws with the bill.

“No-one is fooled by these changes and the government is still clearly intent on denying victims their basic rights and pressing ahead with a bill only it wants.

“The amendments follow the Council of Europe committee of ministers issuing a resolution expressing their serious concern about the bill’s compatibility with the government’s human rights obligations.

“It’s time the government halted the passage of this profoundly unjust bill through Parliament and instead committed to an agreed way forward to deal with the legacy of the Troubles that protects and prioritises victims.”