Speeches, etc.

Margaret Thatcher

Written Statement following assassination of Airey Neave

Document type: Speeches, interviews, etc.
Venue: Conservative Central Office, Smith Square, Westminster
Source: Conservative Party Archive: CCOPR 432/79
Editorial comments: Marked for immediate release. Time and place unknown; late afternoon? The bomb which killed Airey Neave exploded at 1458.
Importance ranking: Major
Word count: 84
Themes: Conservative Party (organization), Northern Ireland, Terrorism

The assassination of Airey Neave has left his friends and colleagues as stunned and grief stricken as his family.

He was one of freedom's warriors. Courageous, staunch, true. He lived for his beliefs, and now he has died for them.

A gentle, brave and unassuming man, he was a loyal and very dear friend. He had a wonderful family who supported him in everything he did. Now, there is a gap in our lives which cannot be filled.