Sinn Féin last night (Wednesday) stood by its insistence that the IRA was not behind the Castlereagh break-in after a major review ruled out any involvement of rogue British government agents.
Nationalist and unionist politicians demanded that the full findings of the investigation – carried out by former civil servant Sir John Chilcot – be made public.
Highly sensitive material was stolen from Special Branch offices at Castlereagh police complex in east Belfast 16 months ago and despite several arrests no-one has been charged over the raid.
Suspicion initially fell on rogue elements within British intelligence but police switched the main focus of their investigation to the Provisional IRA – a claim strenuously denied by the group.
Yesterday Secretary of State Paul Murphy gave some of the information contained in Sir John's report.
But key findings on how those responsible managed to infiltrate Northern Ireland's most secure police station, why involvement of British government agencies was ruled out and any recommendations in relation to intelligence gathering, remains under wraps.
Mr Murphy said: "There has, over the months, been a significant degree of speculation about who might have been involved in this incident, including allegations of collusion.
"I can confirm that the review did not uncover any evidence whatever that members of government agencies were in any way involved in the incident, although the police investigation is continuing."
He added: "The review was also able to provide a satisfactory assurance about the quality of the police investigation.
"This confirmed the conclusions of a separate review of the professional quality and standard of the investigation, carried out by the Metropolitan Police Service last year at the request of the Police Service of Northern Ireland."
The political fallout to the break-in was immense and coupled the uncovering of an alleged IRA spy network at Stormont last Autumn, resulted in the suspension of the power-sharing institutions.
The Director of Public Prosecutions is still deciding whether to launch extradition proceedings against suspect Larry Zaitschek, a former chef at Castlereagh who was in the complex on the night of the raid, but has denied any involvement.
Last night SDLP Policing Board member Alex Attwood said: "The secretary of state needs to quickly confirm if the Chilcot review has recommended a broader and larger role for MI5 in Northern Ireland
"The SDLP was the only party which met Chilcot and it is clear from those meetings that his review was not only about the Castlereagh break-in but also the future role of MI5 in the north.
"The British government must not entertain an enlarged MI5 role."
Board colleague, Ulster Unionist Fred Cobain questioned the "veil of secrecy" over the report.
"What we need from the secretary of state in clear and transparent terms are explanations as to how the most sensitive government building in Northern Ireland was broken into so easily, why the surveillance cameras were dysfunctional and why, over a year after the event, we are still waiting for a full police investigation into the matter," he said.
Sinn Féin's Gerry Kelly insisted:"This summary sheds no light on who was responsible for the raid on the Special Branch offices at Castlereagh.
"The IRA have said that they were not involved. All of the evidence points to the involvement of elements of the intelligence agencies in this raid.
"The accusation that the IRA carried out the raid for the same agencies is designed to divert attention from the real perpetrators.
"It has been used to undermine the Good Friday Agreement and destabilise the peace process itself."
North Belfast MP, Democratic Unionist Nigel Dodds questioned why the report was released on the eve of Parliament's summer recess.
"The Castlereagh break-in was one of the greatest security lapses ever with implications for national security," he said."Why did the government wait until almost the last possible moment, and only then through a process where no questions can be asked?"
