The Northern Ireland Secretary indicated yesterday that an investigation into a murder carried out by the Ulster Volunteer Force would be "extremely uncomfortable" for the British authorities.
Peter Hain was commenting on the report into the police handling of the murder of Raymond McCord Jnr, which is expected to be published shortly by Northern Ireland's Police Ombudsman.
The 22-year-old north Belfast Protestant was beaten to death and his body dumped in a quarry in 1997.
His father, Raymond McCord, campaigned for an inquiry into the police handling of the killing. He claimed it was carried out by UVF members who were police informers and who had been protected from prosecution.
Addressing Ulster politicians at a Preparation for Government committee meeting at Stormont, Mr Hain said the report was likely to be "extremely uncomfortable for the British state".
Any suggestion that the police colluded with loyalists is likely to discourage republicans from accepting the Police Service of Northern Island.
Mr Hain said the report should not be used by Sinn Fein as an excuse for not supporting current policing structures in the province.
He described the murder as an appalling stain on the history of Northern Ireland committed a long time ago.
_______________________________________
Mr Hain is very wrong. This should be used by Sinn Fein and used quite boldly. Everyone with half a mind knows that this is nothing new and police and loyalists go hand in hand.
Republicans aren't going to be any less supportive of the policing structure. They already realise what they're all about and couldn't trust them any less than they already do.
This just further legitimizes why, and they should feel 'extremely uncomfortable' because they've been caught out, although it's not the first time.