Queen's University Belfast
3 Contributions by Queen's University Belfast Experts
PRACTICE NOTES
How has decision making in Northern Ireland been carried out since the passing of the Northern Ireland Act 1998?
To answer this, recall the wider devolution framework for Northern Ireland. The Belfast Agreement envisaged not just a Northern Ireland Assembly, but also the creation of a North/South Ministerial Council and a British-Irish Council.
Under the Northern Ireland Act 1998 (NIA 1998), law-making for specified ‘transferred matters’ is vested in the Assembly. ‘Excepted matters’ remain the responsibility of the UK Parliament, while ‘reserved matters’ also stay there pending potential devolution at a later stage. As an illustration, policing and justice were in the reserved category until their devolution to the Assembly in 2010. See also Practice Note: The mechanics of devolution.
Although an Assembly met in shadow form from 1998, full operation began in late 1999. It was then suspended for several months in 2000, on two
Public Law
PRACTICE NOTES
This Practice Note outlines the Northern Ireland Assembly, explaining how its representatives are chosen and how it legislates. The wider landscape of decision-making in Northern Ireland—highlighting distinctive aspects of devolution shaped by recent history—is addressed separately in Practice Note: The process of decision making in Northern Ireland...
Which voting system is used in Northern Ireland Assembly elections?
Each parliamentary constituency in Northern Ireland returns five Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) using the Single Transferable Vote system. In proportion to the population it serves, the Assembly is comparatively larger than the devolved legislatures in other parts of the United Kingdom. The Assembly cannot enact laws to alter its own size unless cross-community approval is achieved...
The Assembly operates on a fixed term under section 31(1) of the Northern Ireland Act 1998, with separate provision for extraordinary Assembly elections in section 32 of the same Act...
Public Law
FLOWCHARTS
Flowchart
This Flowchart sets out the steps for a Bill to become an Act in the Northern Ireland Assembly. This Flowchart should be considered alongside Practice Notes: Structure and operation of the Northern Ireland Assembly, and The process of decision making in Northern Ireland...
Public Law
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