The British government will tonight try to rush through parliament legislation that would allow an inquiry into the murder of Belfast solicitor Pat Finucane but could also prevent all of the inquiry being held in public.
Despite opposition from the Irish Government and the Finucane family, the British government will attempt to rush the Inquiries Bill through Westminster before parliament is dissolved this week.
The Northern Ireland Office confirmed that the intention is to push the Bill through tonight, although such is the raft of legislation to be implemented before parliament rises it was stressed that there was no guarantee the Bill would pass.
Canadian Judge Peter Cory, who recommended the inquiry into the 1989 UDA killing of Mr Finucane, also opposes elements of the Bill that would permit the British government dictate that what it views as sensitive evidence be delivered in private.
The Government and the Finucane family also wanted no restrictions on the public element of the inquiry. Taoiseach Bertie Ahern lobbied US president George Bush about the issue during his visit to Washington last month, but nonetheless the British government has decided to resist all such pressure.
The Finucane family has indicated it will not co-operate with the inquiry if the British government persists with this restriction, which raises questions about whether the inquiry can carry out its remit to establish whether there was official British collusion in Mr Finucane's murder.
The British chairman of the Bloody Sunday inquiry, Lord Saville, has also criticised the legislation. "I would not be prepared to be a member of an inquiry if at my back was a minister with power to exclude the public or evidence from the hearings," he said recently.
