Source: http://smartleges.com/en/law-library/1998-c-47-northern-ireland-act-1998/2019962
Timestamp: 2019-04-19 13:34:21
Document Index: 474217593

Matched Legal Cases: ['art. 2', 'art. 2', 'art. 2', 'art. 2', 'art. 2', 'art. 2', 'art. 2', 'art. 2', 'art. 2', 'art. 2', 'art. 2', 'art. 2', 'art. 2', 'art. 2']

Northern Ireland Act 1998, 1998 c. 47, Version 19/12/2012
1998 CHAPTER 47
Part II. Legislative Powers
Scrutiny and stages of Bills
Part III. Executive Authorities
Power to refer Ministerial decision to Executive Committee
Executive Committee: further provisions
Part IV. The Northern Ireland Assembly
Presiding Officer and Commission
Part V. NSMC, BIC, BIIC etc.
Part VI. Financial Provisions
Part VII. Human Rights and Equal Opportunities
Part VIII. Miscellaneous
Power to make provision by Order in Council
Social security, child support and pensions
Discrimination: certificates by Secretary of State
Part IX. Supplemental
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An Act to make new provision for the government of Northern Ireland for the purpose of implementing the agreement reached at multi-party talks on Northern Ireland set out in Command Paper 3883.
[19th November 1998]
C1 Act modified (5.10.1999) by 1999 c. 10, ss. 16. 20(2)
C2 Act excluded (temp. from 12.2.2000 to 30.5.2000) by 2000 c. 1, s. 1(8), Sch. para. 5(2); S.I. 2000/396, art. 2; S.I. 2000/1445, art. 2
C3 Act: power to amend conferred (8.5.2007) by Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006 (c. 53), s. 11(2)-(5), 27(4)(5) (as amended by Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2007 c. 4, s. 1(1)) (with s. 1(3)); S.I. 2007/1397, art. 2
C4 Act modified (8.5.2007) by Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006 (c. 53), s. 18(8), 27(4)(5) (as amended by Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2007 c. 4, s. 1(1)) (with s. 1(3)); S.I. 2007/1397, art. 2
1 Status of Northern Ireland.
(1) It is hereby declared that Northern Ireland in its entirety remains part of the United Kingdom and shall not cease to be so without the consent of a majority of the people of Northern Ireland voting in a poll held for the purposes of this section in accordance with Schedule 1.
2 Previous enactments.
The M1 Government of Ireland Act 1920 is repealed; and this Act shall have effect notwithstanding any other previous enactment.
M1 1920 c.67.
3 Devolution order.
(1) If it appears to the Secretary of State that sufficient progress has been made in implementing the Belfast Agreement, he shall lay before Parliament the draft of an Order in Council appointing a day for the commencement of Parts II and III (“the appointed day”).
(2) If the draft Order laid before Parliament under subsection (1) is approved by resolution of each House of Parliament, the Secretary of State shall submit it to Her Majesty in Council and Her Majesty in Council may make the Order.
P1 S. 3(2) power fully exercised (1.12.1999): 2.12.1999 appointed by S.I. 1999/3208
4 Transferred, excepted and reserved matters.
(1) In this Act— “excepted matter” means any matter falling within a description specified in Schedule 2; “reserved matter” means any matter falling within a description specified in Schedule 3; “transferred matter” means any matter which is not an excepted or reserved matter.
(2) If at any time after the appointed day it appears to the Secretary of State—
(a) that any reserved matter should become a transferred matter; or
(b) that any transferred matter should become a reserved matter,
he may, subject to [F1 subsections (2A) and (3) ] , lay before Parliament the draft of an Order in Council amending Schedule 3 so that the matter ceases to be or, as the case may be, becomes a reserved matter with effect from such date as may be specified in the Order.
[F2 (2A) The Secretary of State shall not lay before Parliament under subsection (2) the draft of an Order amending Schedule 3 so that a policing and justice matter ceases to be a reserved matter unless—
(a) a motion for a resolution praying that the matter should cease to be a reserved matter is tabled by the First Minister and the deputy First Minister acting jointly; and
(b) the resolution is passed by the Assembly with the support of a majority of the members voting on the motion, a majority of the designated Nationalists voting and a majority of the designated Unionists voting.]
(3) The Secretary of State shall not lay [F3 before Parliament under subsection (2) the draft of any other Order] unless the Assembly has passed with cross-community support a resolution praying that the matter concerned should cease to be or, as the case may be, should become a reserved matter.
(4) If the draft of an Order laid before Parliament under subsection (2) is approved by resolution of each House of Parliament, the Secretary of State shall submit it to Her Majesty in Council and Her Majesty in Council may make the Order.
(5) In this Act— “the Assembly” means the New Northern Ireland Assembly, which after the appointed day shall be known as the Northern Ireland Assembly; “cross-community support”, in relation to a vote on any matter, means— (a) the support of a majority of the members voting, a majority of the designated Nationalists voting and a majority of the designated Unionists voting; or (b) the support of 60 per cent of the members voting, 40 per cent of the designated Nationalists voting and 40 per cent of the designated Unionists voting; “designated Nationalist” means a member designated as a Nationalist in accordance with standing orders of the Assembly and “designated Unionist” shall be construed accordingly.
[F4 (5A) Standing orders of the Assembly shall provide that a member of the Assembly designated in accordance with the standing orders as a Nationalist, as a Unionist or as Other may change his designation only if—
(a) (being a member of a political party) he becomes a member of a different political party or he ceases to be a member of any political party;
(b) (not being a member of any political party) he becomes a member of a political party.]
[F5 (6) In this section “policing and justice matter” means a matter falling within a description specified in—12
(a) any of paragraphs 9 to 12, 14A to 15A and 17 of Schedule 3; or
(b) any other provision of that Schedule designated for this purpose by an order made by the Secretary of State.]
F1 Words in s. 4(2) substituted (11.3.2009) by Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2006 (c. 33), ss. 16(2), 31; S.I. 2009/448, art. 2
F2 S. 4(2A) inserted (11.3.2009) by Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2006 (c. 33), ss. 16(3), 31 (as amended by Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006 (c. 53), ss. 18(5), 27(4)(5) (with s. 1(3)) (as amended by Northern Ireland (St. Andrews Agreement) Act 2007 (c. 4), s. 1(1)); S.I. 2007/1397, art. 2); S.I. 2009/448, art. 2
F3 Words in s. 4(3) substituted (11.3.2009) by Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2006 (c. 33), ss. 16(4), 31; S.I. 2009/448, art. 2
F4 S. 4(5A) inserted (8.5.2007) by Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006 (c. 53), ss. 2(2), 13, 27(4)(5) (as amended by Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) 2007 c. 4, s. 1(1)) (with s. 1(3)); S.I. 2007/1397, art. 2
F5 S. 4(6) inserted (11.3.2009) by Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2006 (c. 33), ss. 16(5), 31 (as amended by Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006 (c. 53), ss 18(6), 27(4)(5) (with s. 1(3)) (as amended by Northern Ireland (St. Andrews Agreement) Act 2007 (c. 4), s. 1(1)); S.I. 2007/1397, art. 2); S.I. 2009/448, art. 2
C5 Pts. II-IV applied in part (1.1.2007) by The Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006 (S.R. 2006/439), reg. 53(6)
5 Acts of the Northern Ireland Assembly.
(1) Subject to sections 6 to 8, the Assembly may make laws, to be known as Acts.
(2) A Bill shall become an Act when it has been passed by the Assembly and has received Royal Assent.
(3) A Bill receives Royal Assent at the beginning of the day on which Letters Patent under the Great Seal of Northern Ireland signed with Her Majesty’s own hand signifying Her Assent are notified to the Presiding Officer.
(4) The date of Royal Assent shall be written on the Act by the Presiding Officer, and shall form part of the Act.
(5) The validity of any proceedings leading to the enactment of an Act of the Assembly shall not be called into question in any legal proceedings.
(6) This section does not affect the power of the Parliament of the United Kingdom to make laws for Northern Ireland, but an Act of the Assembly may modify any provision made by or under an Act of Parliament in so far as it is part of the law of Northern Ireland.
6 Legislative competence.
(1) A provision of an Act is not law if it is outside the legislative competence of the Assembly.
(2) A provision is outside that competence if any of the following paragraphs apply—
(a) it would form part of the law of a country or territory other than Northern Ireland, or confer or remove functions exercisable otherwise than in or as regards Northern Ireland;
(b) it deals with an excepted matter and is not ancillary to other provisions (whether in the Act or previously enacted) dealing with reserved or transferred matters;
(c) it is incompatible with any of the Convention rights;
(d) it is incompatible with [F6 EU] law;
(e) it discriminates against any person or class of person on the ground of religious belief or political opinion;
(f) it modifies an enactment in breach of section 7.
(3) For the purposes of this Act, a provision is ancillary to other provisions if it is a provision—
(a) which provides for the enforcement of those other provisions or is otherwise necessary or expedient for making those other provisions effective; or
(b) which is otherwise incidental to, or consequential on, those provisions;
and references in this Act to provisions previously enacted are references to provisions contained in, or in any instrument made under, other Northern Ireland legislation or an Act of Parliament.
(4) Her Majesty may by Order in Council specify functions which are to be treated, for such purposes of this Act as may be specified, as being, or as not being, functions which are exercisable in or as regards Northern Ireland.
(5) No recommendation shall be made to Her Majesty to make an Order in Council under subsection (4) unless a draft of the Order has been laid before and approved by resolution of each House of Parliament.
F6 Words in Act substituted (22.4.2011) by The Treaty of Lisbon (Changes in Terminology) Order 2011 (S.I. 2011/1043), arts. 2, 3, 6 (with arts. 3(2)(3), 4(2), 6(4)(5))
7 Entrenched enactments.
(1) Subject to subsection (2) , the following enactments shall not be modified by an Act of the Assembly or subordinate legislation made, confirmed or approved by a Minister or Northern Ireland department—
(a) the M2 European Communities Act 1972;
(b) the M3 Human Rights Act 1998; F7 ...
(c) section 43(1) to (6) and (8) , section 67, sections 84 to [F8 86B] , section 95(3) and (4) and section 98 [F9 and.
F9 (d) section 1 and section 84 of the Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2002.]
(2) Subsection (1) does not prevent an Act of the Assembly or subordinate legislation modifying section 3(3) or (4) or 11(1) of the European Communities Act 1972.
(3) In this Act “Minister”, unless the context otherwise requires, means the First Minister, the deputy First Minister or a Northern Ireland Minister.
F7 Word in s. 7(1) repealed (12.4.2010) by Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2002 (c. 26), s. 87(1), Sch. 13; S.R. 2010/113, art. 2, Sch. para. 21(r)
F8 Word in s. 7(1)(c) substituted (11.3.2009) by Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2006 (c. 33), ss. 30(1), 31, Sch. 4 para. 10; S.I. 2009/448, art. 2
F9 S. 7(1)(d) and word immediately preceding it inserted (16.4.2007) by 2002 c. 26, ss. 84(1), 87(1); S.R. 2007/237, art. 2, Sch.
M2 1972 c.68.
M3 1988 c.42.
8 Consent of Secretary of State required in certain cases.
The consent of the Secretary of State shall be required in relation to a Bill which contains—
(a) a provision which deals with an excepted matter and is ancillary to other provisions (whether in the Bill or previously enacted) dealing with reserved or transferred matters; or
(b) a provision which deals with a reserved matter.
9 Scrutiny by Ministers.
(1) A Minister in charge of a Bill shall, on or before introduction of it in the Assembly, make a statement to the effect that in his view the Bill would be within the legislative competence of the Assembly.
(2) The statement shall be in writing and shall be published in such manner as the Minister making the statement considers appropriate.
10 Scrutiny by Presiding Officer.
(1) Standing orders shall ensure that a Bill is not introduced in the Assembly if the Presiding Officer decides that any provision of it would not be within the legislative competence of the Assembly.
(2) Subject to subsection (3) —
(a) the Presiding Officer shall consider a Bill both on its introduction and before the Assembly enters on its final stage; and
(b) if he considers that the Bill contains—
(i) any provision which deals with an excepted matter and is ancillary to other provisions (whether in the Bill or previously enacted) dealing with reserved or transferred matters; or
(ii) any provision which deals with a reserved matter,
he shall refer it to the Secretary of State; and
(c) the Assembly shall not proceed with the Bill or, as the case may be, enter on its final stage unless—
(i) the Secretary of State’s consent to the consideration of the Bill by the Assembly is signified; or
(ii) the Assembly is informed that in his opinion the Bill does not contain any such provision as is mentioned in paragraph (b) (i) or (ii).
(3) Subsection (2) (b) and (c) shall not apply—
(a) where, in the opinion of the Presiding Officer, each provision of the Bill which deals with an excepted or reserved matter is ancillary to other provisions (whether in the Bill or previously enacted) dealing with transferred matters only; or
(b) on the introduction of a Bill, where the Bill has been endorsed with a statement that the Secretary of State has consented to the Assembly considering the Bill.
(4) In this section and section 14 “final stage”, in relation to a Bill, means the stage in the Assembly’s proceedings at which the Bill falls finally to be passed or rejected.