Haddock shooting 'highlights need for collusion inquiry'

The campaign group An Fhirinne is stepping up its demands for a full public inquiry into alleged collusion in the North following the attempted murder of a senior loyalist last night.

The group says the shooting of Mark Haddock makes it even more urgent for an inquiry to be established as many loyalists involved in collusion could be killed before it even gets underway.

Mr Haddock, a senior member of the Ulster Volunteer Force, is believed to have also been a police informer.

An Fhirinne spokesman Robert McLenaghan says this would appear to show that collusion between the British security forces and loyalist paramilitaries went deeper than previously feared.

"It is now apparent that collusion went to the highest levels, not only of the British government, but of the loyalist death squads themselves," he said.

"The British government effectively took control of organisations like the UVF, like the UDA, and turned them into killing machines.

"They gave them information. They gave them weapons. They ensured there'd be no prosecutions or no effective investigations."