🔗 Share this article Government Reject Public Inquiry into Birmingham Bar Explosions Ministers have decided against launching a public inquiry into the Provisional IRA's 1974 Birmingham city bar explosions. The Horrific Event Back on 21 November 1974, 21 civilians were killed and 220 hurt when explosive devices were set off at the Mulberry Bush and Tavern in the Town pub venues in Birmingham, in an assault widely believed to have been carried out by the IRA. Legal Consequences No one has been found guilty for the attacks. Back in 1991, 6 men had their sentences reversed after enduring more than 16 years in jail in what is considered one of the most severe failures of the legal system in United Kingdom history. Relatives Campaign for Answers Relatives have for decades fought for a national investigation into the attacks to discover what the authorities knew at the time of the tragedy and why nobody has been held accountable. Government Statement The security minister, Dan Jarvis, announced on Thursday that while he had profound compassion for the loved ones, the government had decided “after detailed deliberation” it would not authorize an investigation. Jarvis explained the authorities thinks the reconciliation commission, set up to look into deaths connected to the Northern Ireland conflict, could look into the Birmingham incidents. Campaigners Respond Activist Julie Hambleton, whose teenage sister Maxine was murdered in the bombings, stated the announcement indicated “the government are indifferent”. The 62-year-old has long campaigned for a national inquiry and explained she and other grieving families had “no desire” of participating in the commission. “There’s no true independence in the panel,” she said, adding it was “tantamount to them assessing their own homework”. Calls for Document Disclosure For decades, grieving relatives have been calling for the release of papers from government bodies on the attack – specifically on what the authorities knew prior to and after the incident, and what proof there is that could lead to prosecutions. “The whole British establishment is opposed to our relatives from ever discovering the facts,” she said. “Solely a official judge-led open inquiry will give us access to the files they state they don’t have.” Official Capabilities A statutory public inquiry has specific legal capabilities, encompassing the power to oblige participants to appear and provide evidence associated with the investigation. Previous Investigation An inquest in 2019 – secured by grieving families – ruled the victims were illegally slain by the Provisional IRA but did not determine the identities of those accountable. Hambleton said: “Government bodies informed the then coroner that they have zero documents or information on what is still the UK's most prolonged open atrocity of the last century, but now they intend to pressure us to engage of this investigative body to disclose evidence that they claim has never existed”. Political Criticism Liam Byrne, the MP for Hodge Hill and Solihull North, labeled the cabinet's announcement as “extremely unsatisfactory”. Through a message on Twitter, Byrne stated: “Following such a long time, so much pain, and numerous let-downs” the relatives are entitled to a procedure that is “impartial, court-supervised, with complete capabilities and unafraid in the quest for the reality.” Ongoing Grief Reflecting on the families' ongoing sorrow, Hambleton, who leads the Justice 4 the 21, said: “No family of any horror of any sort will ever have closure. It doesn’t exist. The suffering and the grief continue.”