NI: Executive under obligation to fund Troubles pensions, Court of Appeal rules
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Stormont’s Executive Office is under a legal obligation to fund a pension for people who suffered severe injuries in the Troubles, the Court of Appeal has ruled.
The scheme opens for applications in March but it is not yet clear who will fund the payments, as Stormont and Westminster have been engaged in a long-running argument over responsibility.
The Court of Appeal said it is giving the parties a month to solve the issue.
If they fail to reach an agreement, the case will be relisted to include Stormont’s Department of Finance as an extra notice party.
A spokesperson for the department said that Finance Minister Conor Murphy has been asking Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis to meet him over the issue since September.
A UK government spokesperson said Mr Lewis had “always been clear” that it was for the Stormont Executive to fund the scheme.
It is estimated that the scheme could run to as much as £800 million.
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