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A Westminster committee is to investigate how the government is approaching the legacy of the Troubles.

The NI Affairs Committee says it is important forthcoming legislation is balanced, fair and appropriate.

But a number of campaigning groups have raised questions about the move by MPs.

This inquiry comes after NI Secretary Brandon Lewis unveiled his strategy for dealing with the legacy of the past last month.

Mr Lewis proposes setting up a single independent body to oversee information retrieval and investigation.

He only wants full police investigations in cases with a "realistic prospect" of prosecution due to "new compelling" evidence, otherwise there will be bar on future re-investigation.

Back in March, the Northern Ireland Office said the move would "end the cycle of reinvestigations for the families of victims and (Army) veterans alike".

Sinn Féin and the SDLP strongly criticised the plans and there was a cool response from the Irish government.

Mr Lewis also met strong opposition from a number of victims campaigners, who accused the government of trying to rewrite the rules of justice.

The secretary of state was also accused of showing bad faith.

Now the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee wants to examine if these plans really meet the needs of families and survivors, and if the proposals will help with reconciliation.

The chairman of the committee, Simon Hoare, said "It is essential that the government gets this right, not only for individuals and families affected, who want to know what happened to their loved ones, but to support reconciliation in Northern Ireland for future generations, too.

"The inquiry will provide a forum for people to share their views, and the committee will do all in its power to help ensure that forthcoming legislation is balanced, fair and appropriate to the circumstances in Northern Ireland."

The committee, which includes DUP, SDLP and Alliance MPs, also wants to investigate why these new plans differ from proposals contained in the Stormont House Agreement of 2014.

However the committee's inquiry was criticised by Sinn Féin MP Francie Molloy, who described it as "a further attempt to deny access to truth to families, some of whom have been waiting up to 50 years".

He said: "Instead of coming up with new proposals and inquiring into them leading to further delays, the British government needs to fulfil its obligations and immediately implement the legacy mechanisms contained in the Stormont House Agreement in a human rights compliant way."

Mark Thompson of the campaigning group Relatives for Justice said: "This committee does not hold the confidence of the many thousands of people from across our entire community bereaved and injured as a result of collusion and direct state violence. "

Amnesty International's Northern Ireland Campaign Manager Grainne Teggart said that the current proposals "amount to a further betrayal of victims and are the latest attempt to close down paths to justice".

She added: "Victims' rights to truth, justice and accountability must be vindicated.

"Amnesty will be submitting to the Westminster inquiry to highlight a human rights compatible way forward to finally deal with the past."