Sinn Fein MLA Raymond McCartney
SINN Féin MLA Raymond McCartney has expressed concern over the potential for further delays to inquests when the chief coroner retires next month.
John Leckey leaves his post after 20 years with a wealth of legacy cases still to be heard.
Mr McCartney said: “The senior coroner in the North is due to retire next month and two other coroners are currently off on sick leave.
“It has been known for some time that the senior coroner is due to retire and measures should have been put in place before now to ensure a replacement is in place as soon as possible.
“But it now seems likely that a replacement will not be in position until next Easter.
“Many families have already waited too long to find out the truth about exactly what happened to their loved ones.
“They have had to contend with continual attempts by the British government to frustrate their campaign for truth and justice and now they could be facing further delays because of a lack of coroners.
“The Justice Minister needs to act to ensure relatives seeking justice are not put through more anxiety and distress because inquests are delayed.”
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