Plymouth City Council will ask the city’s MPs to help the Government consider extending protection from historic prosecution to Armed Forces veterans who have served in Northern Ireland.

The Labour proposal also asked the leader of the council leader Tudor Evans to write to the MPs calling on them to continue efforts to ensure the needs of veterans were “supported fully”.

It received cross-party backing from councillors after the rejection of a Tory motion to write to the Prime Minister calling for an end to the “witch hunt” of former Northern Ireland service personnel.

Labour’s Gareth Derrick, a forces veteran, rejected the “inflammatory” language of the Conservative proposal. 

His alternative supported by the council on Monday afternoon recognised the importance of the Good Friday Agreement, which brought peace to Northern Ireland in 1998.

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Cllr Derrick told the meeting he backed equality for Northern Ireland veterans.  His proposal sought to find a way to achieve that which avoided undermining the peace process.

The original motion was put forward by Conservative Glenn Jordan, a Royal Navy veteran. After it was voted down, he said he would back the Labour move, but was disappointed it “watered down” the request to write to the Prime Minister.

His motion recognised the work of Moor View Tory MP Johnny Mercer on the issue and welcomed the Government’s plan for a 10-year limit on historic investigations, but expressed disappointment that the proposed new law would not cover Northern Ireland.

Cllr Jordan said: “There is a place for inquiries. When you have one after another after another when you don’t get the answer you want, no one really wins.”

He said 50,000 people were killed by terrorists during the Troubles in Northern Ireland compared to 301 by security forces.

Many of the people alleged to have committed “heinous atrocities” were walking around with “comfort letters” from the UK Government that they would not face prosecution, while veterans faced having to relive events in court after previously being cleared of wrongdoing.

Justice for Northern Ireland Veterans campaign group protested in Plymouth city centre

Cllr Jordan said: “The Government needs to get a handle on these cases. All veterans need to be treated the same.”

Conservative Rebecca Smith , supporting the original motion, said the Government should be asked to deal with the issue “as a matter of urgency”.

The Labour proposal added recognition of the work by Sutton and Devonport Labour MP Luke Pollard and said veterans of Northern Ireland were not getting “adequate support” from the Government.

Cllr Derrick told councillors he could not support the “emotive” and “inflammatory” language of the original motion claiming there was a "witch hunt" against veterans.

In May Defence Secretary Penny Mordaunt announced a proposed new law that would protect service personnel from investigation over actions on the battlefield abroad after 10 years, except in "exceptional circumstances".

The group are hoping to educate members of the public

She said it would prevent "repeated or unfair investigations" but would not apply to alleged offences in Northern Ireland.

Six former soldiers who served in Northern Ireland during the Troubles are currently facing prosecution.

The proceedings have been criticised by some Tory MPs, including Mr Mercer, a former Army captain, who in May said he would not co-operate with the government until it ended the prosecutions.

An inquiry into allegations against Iraq war veterans was shut down in 2017 in response to a parliamentary inquiry Mr Mercer chaired.