Gallagher's (Michael) Application
| Jurisdiction | Northern Ireland |
| Judge | Maguire J |
| Judgment Date | 20 December 2016 |
| Neutral Citation | [2016] NIQB 95 |
| Court | Queen's Bench Division (Northern Ireland) |
| Date | 20 December 2016 |
1
Neutral Citation [2016] NIQB 95 Ref:
MAG10113
Judgment: approved by the Court for handing down Delivered:
20/12/2016
(subject to editorial corrections)*
2013 No. 125920/1
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE IN NORTHERN IRELAND
QUEEN’S BENCH DIVISION (JUDICIAL REVIEW)
________
IN THE MATTER OF AN APPLICATION BY MICHAEL GALLAGHER
FOR JUDICIAL REVIEW
AND IN THE MATTER OF A DECISION OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE
FOR NORTHERN IRELAND MADE ON 12 SEPTEMBER 2013
________
MAGUIRE J
Introduction
[1] The court has before it an application made by the Secretary of State for
Northern Ireland (“the Secretary of State”) pursuant to section 6 of the Justice and
Security Act 2013 (“JSA”). This application relates to ongoing civil proceedings by
way of an application for judicial review. In those proceedings the applicant for
judicial review is Michael Gallagher and the respondent is the Secretary of State.
These proceedings were begun on 6 December 2013. Leave to apply for judicial
review was granted by Treacy J on 21 January 2015. The central issue between the
parties in the judicial review relates to the lawfulness of a decision made by the
Secretary of State on 26 September 2013. That decision was not to hold a public
inquiry into the circumstances of the notorious Omagh bomb explosion which
occurred in the town of Omagh, County Tyrone, on 15 August 1998. As is well
known, the explosion resulted in extensive loss of life, injury to persons and damage
to property. Responsibility for the bomb was claimed by the Real IRA. One of those
who died in the explosion was the applicant’s son, Aidan.
[2] In the aftermath of the explosion a police investigation began. This
investigation has been ongoing for many years. However, the central issue in the
judicial review proceedings is not concerned with the effectiveness of that
investigation. Rather the central issue relates to the question whether the explosion
had been preventable. The applicant’s case is that the authorities knew or ought to
have known in advance of the explosion and that they failed to take such steps as
were reasonable in all the circumstances to respond to and prevent it occurring. A
2
range of issues relating to the preventability of the explosion have been put forward
by the applicant, as will be explained later. In short, the applicant maintains there
has been no or no adequate investigation into the issue of the preventability of the
deaths so as to satisfy Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
The Application before the Court
[3] The application before the court is made by the Secretary of State. It seeks a
declaration under section 6(2)(a) of the JSA. The declaration sought is that the
proceedings are ones in which a closed material application may be made to the
court. The reasons for this application are set forth in an open statement of reasons,
which is a document of some 8 pages in length, signed by the Secretary of State.
Additionally an affidavit has been filed by Lesley O’Rourke, the Head of Security
Policy and Casework in the Northern Ireland Office. Moreover, there is before the
court a closed statement of reasons from the Secretary of State. For the purpose of
the present application the Secretary of State was represented by Mr Eadie QC and
Mr Paul McLaughlin BL and the applicant has been represented by Ashley
Underwood QC and Mr Foster BL. In addition Mr Scoffield QC has acted as a
Special Advocate (appointed by the Advocate General for Northern Ireland) to
represent the applicant in that part of the application from which the applicant and
his legal representatives have been excluded.
The Statutory Framework
[4] The relevant statutory framework dealing with this sort of application is
found in the JSA. Section 6, so far as is relevant, reads:
“(1) The court seized of relevant civil proceedings may
make a declaration that the proceedings are proceedings
in which a closed material application may be made to
the court.
(2) The court may make such a declaration –
(a) On the application of –
(i) the Secretary of State (whether or not the
Secretary of State is a party to the
proceedings), …
(iii) the court may make such a declaration if it
considers that the following two conditions
are met.
(4) The first condition is that –
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3 cases
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Gallagher's (Michael) Application for Judicial Review and in the matter of a decision by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland made on 12th September 2013
...GROUNDS OF PREVENTABILITY [144] As Maguire J observed at paragraph [10] of his judgment in Re Gallagher’s Application for Judicial Review [2016] NIQB 95, the allegations relating to the issue of the preventability of the explosion are wide-ranging. They are: “1. An anonymous phone call of 4......
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Abdul Hakim Belhaj and Another v Rt Hon Jack Straw and Others
...Hermer relied on a passage in the judgment of Maguire J in the Northern Irish case of In Re Gallagher's application for Judicial Review [2016] NIQB 95 in which the court was considering a s.6 application in respect of the decision of the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland not to hold a......
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Muna Abdule v The Foreign and Commonwealth Office
...– see for instance the decision of Maguire J. in the Northern Ireland High Court in Michael Gallagher's Application for Judicial Review [2016] NIQB 95 T [19]–[20]. Thus, had I concluded that the sensitive material in question was peripheral to the issues in dispute, I would not have found t......