The Steering Committee of the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly has corrected a ‘drafting error’ which led to allegations that some ambulances from Northern Ireland were unable to cross the border into Donegal in the wake of the Creeslough tragedy.
The committee has clarified that at a sitting in October this year, claims were made that individuals were said not to have been able to attend the site of the Creeslough tragedy as the appropriate visas were not held.
As a result of a drafting error the paragraph referred to “ambulances” not attending instead of “paramedics”.
The British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly’s Committee on Sovereign Matters has updated its report to correct the error and to acknowledge a statement from the NI Ambulance Service that its response to the tragedy was not affected in any way by border or visa issues.
It confirmed in presenting the report to the Assembly, and in subsequent media interviews, the Chair of the Committee, Senator Emer Currie, reflected in good faith the content of the report, as did subsequent media reports.
The Committee has apologised for any confusion and has again extended it’s sincere thanks and appreciation to the ambulance services and other emergency services which attended the Creeslough tragedy.
Full Statement:
The Steering Committee of the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly (BIPA) wishes to clarify an issue arising from the recent BIPA report, Protecting the Common Travel Area in the post-Brexit era.
The report was debated and adopted by the Assembly, a body made up of legislators from the parliaments and assemblies of Ireland, the UK and the Crown Dependencies, on 24 October 2023 during its 65th plenary sitting in Straffan, Co. Kildare.
A paragraph in the report sought to reflect a claim made to BIPA’s Committee on Sovereign Matters about an instance in October 2022 where individuals were said not to have been able to attend the site of the Creeslough tragedy in Co. Donegal as the appropriate visas were not held. As a result of a drafting error the paragraph referred to “ambulances” not attending. Based on the evidence given to the Committee, the reference should have been to “paramedics” being affected.
BIPA’s Committee on Sovereign Matters has now updated its report to correct the drafting error and to acknowledge the subsequent statement published by the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service that its response to Creeslough was not affected in any way by border or visa issues.
In presenting the Committee’s report to the Assembly on 24 October 2023, and in her subsequent media interviews, the Chair of the Committee, Senator Emer Currie, reflected in good faith the content of the report, as did subsequent media reports including those by The Irish Times.
The BIPA Steering Committee has adopted the revised report on behalf of the Assembly. The Committee wishes to apologise for any confusion that may have arisen.
Furthermore the Steering Committee, on behalf of BIPA, again extends the Assembly’s sincere thanks and appreciation to members of all the ambulance services and other emergency services which attended the Creeslough tragedy. BIPA appreciates the professionalism and dedication to duty of these services and their commitment to providing the swiftest possible response and the best possible care to all who require their assistance.
