Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006

Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006[1]Act of Parliament

Parliament of the United Kingdom

Long title| An Act to make provision for preparations for the restoration of devolved government in Northern Ireland in accordance with the St Andrews Agreement; to make provision as to the consequences of compliance, or non-compliance, with the St Andrews Agreement timetable; to amend the Northern Ireland Act 1998; to make provision about district policing partnerships; to amend the Education (Northern Ireland) Orders 1997 and 2006; and for connected purposes.
Citation| 2006 c. 53
Introduced by| Peter Hain MP, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (Commons)
Lord Rooker (Lords)
Territorial extent | England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, except for sections 20 and 21 and Schedules 8 and 9, which extend only to Northern Ireland.[2]
Dates
Royal assent| 22 November 2006
History of passage through Parliament
Text of statute as originally enacted
Revised text of statute as amended

The Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006 (c. 53) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It implemented the St Andrews Agreement. It is modified by section 1 of the Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2007.

## Part 2 - Amendments of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 etc

[edit]

### Section 5 - The Executive Committee and the Ministerial Code

[edit]

Section 5(1) inserts section 20(4) of the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

Section 5(2) inserts section 28A of that Act.

### Section 6 - Power to refer Ministerial decision to Executive Committee

[edit]

This section inserts section 28B of the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

### Section 7 - Pledge of office

[edit]

This section amends Schedule 4 to the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

### Section 8 - First Minister, deputy First Minister and Northern Ireland Ministers

[edit]

This section substitutes sections 16A to 16C, for section 16, of the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

### Section 9 - Department with policing and justice functions: nomination etc of Ministers

[edit]

This section provides that Schedule 6 has effect.

### Section 10 - Statutory committee for Office of First Minister and deputy First Minister

[edit]

This section amends section 29 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

### Section 11 - Committee to review functioning of Assembly and Executive Committee

[edit]

Section 11(1) inserts sections 29A and 29B of the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

### Section 12 - North-South Ministerial Council and British-Irish Council

[edit]

This section substitutes new sections 52A to 52C for the existing section 52 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

### Section 13 - Community designation

[edit]

This section inserts section 4(5A) of the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

### Section 14 - Power of Executive Committee to call for witnesses and documents

[edit]

This section inserts section 28C of the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

### Section 15 - Strategies relating to Irish language and Ulster Scots language etc

[edit]

This section inserts section 28D of the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

### Section 16 - Strategy relating to poverty, social exclusion etc

[edit]

This section inserts section 28E of the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

### Section 17 - Vacancy in the Assembly

[edit]

This section inserts paragraph 5 of Schedule 6 to the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

### Section 19 - Minor and consequential amendments

[edit]

This section provides that Schedule 7 has effect.

## Part 3 - Other amendments

[edit]

### Section 20 - District policing partnerships

[edit]

This section provides that Schedules 8 and 9 have effect.

This section was repealed by Part 2 of Schedule 8 to the Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 2011.

### Section 21 - Amendment of Education (Northern Ireland) Order 2006 etc

[edit]

Section 21(1) substitutes articles 1(6)(a) and (b) of the Education (Northern Ireland) Order 2006 (S.I. 2006/1915 (N.I. 11).

Section 21(2) amends article 16(5) of the Education (Northern Ireland) Order 1997 (S.I. 1997/866 (N.I. 5)).

## Part 4 Supplemental

[edit]

### Section 22 - Repeal of the 2006 Act

[edit]

This section repeals the Northern Ireland Act 2006.

### Section 27 - Commencement

[edit]

Section 27(6) was repealed by Part 2 of Schedule 8 to the Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 2011.

Orders made under this section

* The Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006 (Commencement No.1) Order 2007 (S.I. 2007/92 (C.4)) was made under section 27(3)(a).
* The Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006 (Commencement No.2) Order 2007 (S.I. 2007/2491 (C.94)) was made under section 27(3)(b).
* The power under section 27(6) was exercised by article 3 of the Police (Northern Ireland) Act 2003 (Commencement No.2) Order 2007 (S.I. 2007/371 (C.26))

## Sechedule 8 - Reconstitution of district policing partnerships

[edit]

This Schedule was repealed by Part 2 of Schedule 8 to the Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 2011.

## Schedule 9 - District policing partnerships: Belfast sub-groups

[edit]

This Schedule was repealed by Part 2 of Schedule 8 to the Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2011.

## Summary

[edit]

Section in the act  | Section in the agreement  | Provision

|
|

Section 2  | Repeal of the Northern Ireland Act 2000  | The Northern Ireland Act 2000 was repealed by the 2006 act.[3]
Section 5  | A statutory ministerial Code  | The 2006 act amended the Northern Ireland Act 1998 to include a statutory ministerial code.[4] This makes the Northern Ireland Executive the first, and as of 2021 only, government in the United Kingdom to have a statutory ministerial code.[4]
Section 6  | Assembly referrals for Executive review  | The 2006 act amended the Northern Ireland Act 1998 to allow that if 30 or more MLAs are unhappy with a ministerial decision, they can refer it back to the executive for review.[5]
Section 7  | Amendments to the Pledge of Office  | The 2006 act amended the Pledge of Office to include an endorsement of the police and courts.[6][7]
Section 8  | Appointment of Ministers in the Executive  | The 2006 act amended the Northern Ireland Act 1998 to require that the First Minister will normally come from the largest party within the largest designation.[8] Unlike the text of the agreement, the act requires that the largest party chooses the First Minister no matter the size of their designation.[8]
Section 10  | Committee of the Centre  | The 2006 act put the Committee of the Centre, which oversaw the Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister, on a statutory basis.[9]
Section 11  | Reviews  | The 2006 act put established the Assembly and Executive Review committee.[10]
Section 12  | Attendance at NSMC and BIC  | The 2006 act allows for ministers and junior ministers in the Executive to be able to attend the NSMC and BIC if an issue within the portfolio is within their portfolio.[11]
Section 13  | Community designation  | The 2006 act amended the Northern Ireland Act 1998 to require that MLAs can only change their community designation if they change their political party affiliation.[12]

## Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2007

[edit]

Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2007[13]

Parliament of the United Kingdom

Long title| An Act to modify the effect of the Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006.
Citation| 2007 c 4
Dates
Royal assent| 27 March 2007
Commencement| 27 March 2007[14]
History of passage through Parliament
Text of statute as originally enacted
Revised text of statute as amended

The Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2007 (c 4) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Act extended the statutory deadline for the restoration of the Northern Ireland Assembly to 8 May 2007.[15][16][17]

## See also

[edit]

* Northern Ireland Act

## References

[edit]

* "Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006". Halsbury's Halsbury's Statutes of England and Wales. Fourth Edition. Current Statutes Service. vol 31. p 27 et seq.
* "Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006". Current Law Statutes Annotated 2006. Sweet & Maxwell. London. W Green. Edinburgh. 2006. Volume 3. Chapter 53. p 53-1 et seq.

1. ^ The citation of this Act by this short title is authorised by section 28 of this Act.
2. ^ The Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006, section 26
3. ^ Sergeant, Jess (31 July 2019). "Direct rule in Northern Ireland". Institute for Government. Archived from the original on 12 August 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
4. ^ a b Durrant, Tim; Pannell, Jack; Hodson, Catherine (2021). "Updating the ministerial code" (PDF). Institute for Government. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 May 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
5. ^ "Impact of St Andrews on the Assembly and Executive | Northern Ireland Assembly Education Service". education.niassembly.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 27 November 2022. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
6. ^ "First glitch on the NI political road?". BBC News. 17 October 2006. Archived from the original on 21 October 2020. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
7. ^ Devenport, Mark (11 November 2006). "Yeah but no but... what next?". BBC News. Archived from the original on 25 May 2025. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
8. ^ a b FactCheckNI (1 June 2021). "The process of nominating the First and deputy First Ministers". FactCheckNI. Archived from the original on 5 February 2023. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
9. ^ "Northern Ireland Assembly". Archived from the original on 10 April 2008. Retrieved 8 May 2008.
10. ^ McCarthy, James Martin (6 February 2024). "Meet the MLAs appointed to chair Stormont's Committees". Belfast Live. Archived from the original on 7 February 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
11. ^ "House of Commons - Explanatory Note". publications.parliament.uk. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
12. ^ "Voting and community designation" (PDF). Northern Ireland Assembly. 28 September 2010. Archived (PDF) from the original on 31 August 2012. Retrieved 25 May 2025.
13. ^ The citation of this Act by this short title is authorised by section 2 of this Act.
14. ^ The Interpretation Act 1978, section 4(b)
15. ^
* The Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2007, as amended.
* The Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2007, as originally enacted.
* Explanatory notes to the Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2007.
16. ^ "Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2007". Halsbury's Statutes of England and Wales. Fourth Edition. Current Statutes Service. vol 31. p 75 et seq.
17. ^ "Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2007". Current Law Statutes Annotated 2007. Chapter 4. p 4-1 et seq.

## External links

[edit]

* The Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006, as amended from the National Archives.
* The Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006, as originally enacted from the National Archives.
* Explanatory notes to the Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006.

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