Call to ban Aegis from Foreign Office contracts

The Foreign Office today awarded a £30 million contract for security in Afghanistan to Armorgroup International.

The decision not to award the contract to Tim Spicer’s Aegis was welcomed by the family of Peter McBride, who was shot dead by soldiers under Spicer’s command in Belfast in 1992.

However, in a letter to the Foreign Office on behalf of Peter’s mother, Jean McBride, the Pat Finucane Centre has protested at the decision to allow Aegis to tender for the contract, and said that it will seek a judicial review if the company remains on the list of approved bidders.

The Centre issued the following statement this afternoon: 

Mrs Jean Mc Bride has welcomed the decision earlier today of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) in London not to award a major £40 million private security contract in Afghanistan to Aegis Defence Services, whose CEO is Lt Col Tim Spicer.  She has however vowed to take a legal action against the FCO unless Aegis is removed from the FCO list of companies invited to tender for security contracts. Mrs Mc Bride’s son Peter was murdered by two members of the British Army in Belfast in 1992.

Two soldiers, Mark Wright and James Fisher, were convicted of the murder. Their Commanding Officer was Tim Spicer and he sought to portray an entirely fictitious and untruthful version of the events preceding, during and following the actual murder, according to Mrs Mc Bride. 

In advance of the FCO decision earlier today  Mrs Mc Bride had made representations to ministry officials pointing to Spicer’s actions following the murder of her son and his subsequent activities in Papua New Guinea, Sierra Leone and Iraq. See correspondence to the FCO at www.patfinucanecentre.org
In welcoming the fact that Aegis did not win the contract Mrs Mc Bride reminded the FCO that legal action was still pending should they refuse her request to remove Aegis from the list of companies invited to submit tenders for ‘private security’ contracts.

"The FCO have been provided with detailed reasons as to why a man who has sought to justify the murder of my son is not fit to be in charge of armed security guards/mercenaries in conflict zones. If Aegis is not removed from the list I will pursue a legal action through the courts. I hope that my intervention made the FCO think twice about doing business with Spicer. "

Mrs Mc Bride had requested that the FCO urgently review the decision to include Aegis Defence Services on the list of companies invited to submit tenders for this or any other Government contract involving the use of private security/ mercenary companies in conflict zones throughout the world.

Mrs Mc Bride had also requested that the FCO ensure that Aegis Defence Services not be awarded this or any other Government contract involving the use of private security/ mercenary companies in conflict zones throughout the world.

In correspondence Mrs Mc Bride noted,

"If the Foreign and Commonwealth Office or any other government department allows Aegis Defence Services to remain on the list of companies invited to submit tenders for this or any other Government contract involving the use of private security/ mercenary companies in conflict zones throughout the world and/or if Aegis Defence Services is awarded the contract to provide security services to the British Government in Kabul and various other locations across Afghanistan, including Kandahar and Helmand Province then Mrs Jean Mc Bride will seek legal opinion with a view to judicially reviewing any decision to allow Aegis Defence Services to remain on the list and/or be awarded said contract." Aegis was one of six companies invited to submit tenders.