MI5 agents must give Saville Inquiry evidence

Two MI5 agents whose evidence may throw light on Martin McGuinness’s movements on Bloody Sunday will have to give live evidence to the inquiry, it has emerged.

They are being called because they worked with a former IRA informant who claimed that Mr McGuinness, now the Education Minister and MP for Mid Ulster, fired the first shot on the 30 January 1972 Derry march when British paratroopers killed 13 men.

The inquiry has rejected an application by the security services for a time-delay restriction to be imposed when the agents, identified only as Officers A and B, take the stand.

The rejected application also included former MI5 agent David Shayler, an inquiry spokesman confirmed.

Officer A acted as a handler for the informant, codenamed Infliction, while Officer B debriefed him.

Lord Saville, the inquiry chairman, has previously ruled that Infliction will not have to give evidence because it would put his life at risk and breach his human rights.

Infliction is alleged to have told this handlers that he heard Mr McGuinness confess to firing the first shot. Mr McGuinness has admitted being the IRA’s number two in Derry on Bloody Sunday but insists he did not fire shots.

The security services had asked that only the tribunal panel, counsel to the tribunal and security service representatives be in the inquiry chamber when the men testify and for transcripts of their evidence to be delayed and checked before it is released.

They suggested that members of the public, including bereaved relatives, and legal representatives of the interested parties, should be cleared from the chamber when the agents gave evidence.

Lawyers representing the victims’ families should write a list of questions that would be asked in their absence.

The tribunal said it “recognised the difficulties regarding the inadvertent release of potential damaging information” in questioning these officers in public but added that “adequate safeguard” procedures would be in place.

Several security service officers will be screened while they give evidence to the British government-appointed the inquiry, which is currently sitting in London to hear evidence from military and political witnesses for security reasons.

No dates have been set for when the officers will appear. It is unclear whether it will be necessary to call Shayler who, like other witnesses, has provided a sworn statement, to give evidence in person, the spokesman said.

In coming to its ruling the tribunal panel read a number of confidential documents relating to the operational integrity of the security service and its members in private.