Ulster Unionist Justice spokesperson Tom Elliott MLA has demanded answers following the evidence given to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee at Westminster by former Detective Chief Superintendent Norman Baxter.
Mr Elliott said:
“The comments made by Norman Baxter in his evidence to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee were breath-taking.
“The idea that any politician should seek to interfere in a police investigation is worthy of a Third World dictatorship and not the United Kingdom.
“The fact that Gerry McGeough was found guilty indicates that Downing Street was prepared to see a guilty man go free to appease Sinn Fein.
“No wonder Sinn Fein was so keen to get policing and justice powers devolved. They clearly thought that applying political pressure to the Police was common practice and they obviously thought if a justice Minister was installed in Belfast they could continue to do without even having to bother phoning London.
“A number of key questions arise.
“Just how long has this been going on?
“How common was it for Gerry Adams or other senior Sinn Fein figures to call Downing Street and demand that political pressure be applied on the Police to either release suspects or drop investigations?
“Was it common practice for Downing Street to accept such calls and to act on them? When did this start and when did it stop?
“And the question also arises. How many Sinn Fein politicians have been spared investigation as a result?”