First Minister and deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Kwekubo (talk | contribs) at 00:15, 22 December 2010 (Office was known as "Deputy First Minister" until 2007, some time after McGuinness took office). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

This article is part of a series within the
Politics of the United Kingdom on the
Politics of Northern Ireland
Executive

 a Lowercase "d" per here.

Assembly
Law
Northern Ireland in the UK
Northern Ireland and Ireland
Local government

The First Minister and the deputy First Minister (Irish: Céad-Aire agus an leas-Chéad-Aire, Ulster Scots: Heid Männystèr an tha Heid Männystèr depute), abbreviated to FM/dFM,[1] are positions in the Northern Ireland Executive with overall responsibility for the running of the Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister (OFMDFM) in Northern Ireland.

The incumbents are Peter Robinson of the Democratic Unionist Party as First Minister and Martin McGuinness of Sinn Féin as deputy First Minister.

About

The two positions are a diarchy, meaning they have equal power.

The incumbent First Minister and deputy First Minister are Peter Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party) who was temporarily replaced by Arlene Foster (Democratic Unionist Party) as Acting First Minister, and Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin) respectively.[2]

The former First Minister, Ian Paisley, stood down in May 2008.[3] This triggered the removal of Martin McGuinness as deputy First Minister, although he remained in position in a caretaker capacity until being renominated with a new First Minister designate. On 17 April 2008 Peter Robinson was ratified as Democratic Unionist Party leader designate.[4] As leader-designate of the largest designated Unionist party in the Northern Ireland Assembly he was also in effect the First Minister designate and became First Minister on 5 June 2008.[5]

Responsibilities

The First Minister and deputy First Minister share their responsibilities with each other in a diarchy.

"Support for the Executive and liaison with the Assembly, the North-South Ministerial Council, British-Irish Council, Civic Forum and UK Departments; international relations; Programme for Government and the Executive’s economic policies; promoting and monitoring implementation of equality of opportunity/good relations, tackling poverty and social exclusion, children and young people, victims and survivors, sustainable development; Maze/Long Kesh Regeneration; Review of Public Administration; Information Service; emergency planning; improving investment in infrastructure and the Statutory Publications Office."[6]

Two Junior Ministers assist the First Minister and deputy First Minister in carrying out the work of OFMDFM. They are jointly accountable to the First Minister and deputy First Minister. The incumbent Junior Ministers are Robin Newton (DUP) and Gerry Kelly (Sinn Féin).[6]

Election

The First Minister elected by the Assembly on a joint ticket with the deputy First Minister. Their joint nomination has to obtain an overall majority in the Assembly along with a majority of both designated Nationalist MLAs and designated Unionist MLAs. The First Minister will be from the biggest designation in the Assembly and the deputy First Minister from the other designation. Designated Other MLAs also vote.

This diarchy was created to enable the leaders of the main unionist and nationalist parties to work together as a team jointly representing both communities.

Following the St Andrews Agreement, this was changed so that the Leader of the largest party nominated the First Minister, and the leader of the next largest party that is in the opposite designation nominated the deputy First Minister.

Pay

The salary for the two positions is £111,183[7] each (including MLA pay).

Terminology

"Deputy" becomes "deputy"

The first two holders of the office now known as "deputy First Minister", namely Seamus Mallon and Mark Durkan, were both referred to during their periods of office as "Deputy First Minister", with a capital D. This version was also adopted in 1999 for the logo of the OFMDFM. Several weeks after Martin McGuinness took up office as Deputy First Minister in 2007, civil servants began asking the Assembly's Hansard team to replace the capital D with a lower-case d, pointing out that the title was spelled this way in the Northern Ireland Act 1998, the legislation which established the office. Some believe that the case was changed to highlight the fact that the position holds the same power as the position of First Minister, but a spokesman for Mr McGuinness said that neither McGuinness nor his advisers had asked for the change. The Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly, William Hay, ordered the change and the capital D was dropped from Hansard references. The Office of the First and deputy First Minister continues to use both versions of Mr McGuinness' title on their website, and their archive of press releases has been changed, but the capital D still appears in some places, and a spokesman confirmed on 20 March 2008 that the office has "no plans" to change the OFMDFM logo. However, the Assembly committee that scrutinises their work is now listed as the "Committee for the Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister". Ultimately it was decided that Mr McGuinness should be the deputy First Minister, unless all the other letters in the title are in capitals. Confusion isn't completely resolved however; if Mr McGuinness writes to the Assembly committee that scrutinises his work, his note will have a letterhead that comes from the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister, but he'll get a reply back from the Committee for the Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister.[8]

"Joint First Minister"

Sinn Féin started using the phrase Joint First Minister in 2009 to describe the deputy First Minister to highlight the fact that the First Minister and deputy First Minister operated as a diarchy. Martin McGuinness recently used the term himself when he arrived for a meeting of the North/South Ministerial Council; the DUP denounced the term as "Republican Speak".[9] Jim Allister, the leader of the Traditional Unionist Voice has long been calling Robinson and McGuinness "the joint first ministers", to highlight the joint nature of the office and to demonstrate his opposition to the power-sharing arrangements.[9] In the Assembly chamber David McClarty used the phrase but was corrected by William Hay the Speaker.[9]

"Co-First Minister"

Sinn Féin started using the phrase Co-First Minister in 2009 to describe the deputy First Minister to highlight the fact that the First Minister and deputy First Minister operated as a diarchy. On the Sinn Féin website McGuinness is listed as "Joint First Minister".[9][10][11] The DUP denounced the term as "Republican Speak".[9]

History

Alex Salmond (right) meets Ian Paisley (centre) and Martin McGuinness (left) in 2008

Following a referendum on the Belfast Agreement on 23 May 1998 and subsequent the Northern Ireland Act 1998, the Northern Ireland Assembly was established in 1998 with a view to assuming devolved powers from the Westminster Parliament. On 1 July 1998 David Trimble (Ulster Unionist Party) and Seamus Mallon (Social Democratic and Labour Party) were nominated and elected First Minister and Deputy First Minister designates respectively. Eventually, on 2 December 1999, power was devolved and Mr Trimble and Mr Mallon formally took office as joint heads of the Northern Ireland Executive.

On 6 November 2001 Mark Durkan (SDLP) became Deputy First Minister after Seamus Mallon's retirement. On 8 May 2007 Ian Paisley (DUP) and Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin) were nominated and elected First Minister and Deputy First Minister respectively in line with the announcement by their two parties on 26 March 2007; the latter office became commonly known as "deputy First Minister" later in the year. After Paisley stepped down Peter Robinson was elected as First Minister with Martin McGuinness as deputy First Minister on 5 June 2008.

Between 12 February 2000 [12] and 30 May 2000,[13] and 15 October 2002[14] and 8 May 2007,[15] however, devolution was suspended, and along with it the offices of First Minister and Deputy First Minster. The Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister became the responsibility of the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. There were also two "technical" 24-hour periods of suspension on 11 August 2001 and 22 September 2001.[16][17][18][19][20]

First Ministers and deputy First Ministers

First Ministers

Minister Party Took office Left office
style="background:Template:Ulster Unionist Party/meta/color" |     David Trimble Template:Ulster Unionist Party/meta/shortname 2 December 1999 11 February 2000
Office suspended
style="background:Template:Ulster Unionist Party/meta/color" |     David Trimble Template:Ulster Unionist Party/meta/shortname 30 May 2000 30 June 2001
style="background:Template:Ulster Unionist Party/meta/color" |     Sir Reg Empey (acting) Template:Ulster Unionist Party/meta/shortname 1 July 2001 6 November 2001[21]
style="background:Template:Ulster Unionist Party/meta/color" |     David Trimble Template:Ulster Unionist Party/meta/shortname 6 November 2001 14 October 2002
Office suspended
style="background:Template:Democratic Unionist Party/meta/color" |     Ian Paisley Template:Democratic Unionist Party/meta/shortname 8 May 2007 5 June 2008
style="background:Template:Democratic Unionist Party/meta/color" |     Peter Robinson Template:Democratic Unionist Party/meta/shortname 5 June 2008 11 January 2010
style="background:Template:Democratic Unionist Party/meta/color" |     Arlene Foster (acting) Template:Democratic Unionist Party/meta/shortname 11 January 2010 3 February 2010
style="background:Template:Democratic Unionist Party/meta/color" |     Peter Robinson Template:Democratic Unionist Party/meta/shortname 3 February 2010 Incumbent

Deputy First Ministers

Minister Party Took office Left office
style="background:Template:Social Democratic and Labour Party/meta/color" |     Seamus Mallon Template:Social Democratic and Labour Party/meta/shortname 2 December 1999 11 February 2000
Office suspended
style="background:Template:Social Democratic and Labour Party/meta/color" |     Seamus Mallon Template:Social Democratic and Labour Party/meta/shortname 30 May 2000 6 November 2001[21]
style="background:Template:Social Democratic and Labour Party/meta/color" |     Mark Durkan Template:Social Democratic and Labour Party/meta/shortname 6 November 2001 14 October 2002
Office suspended
style="background:Template:Sinn Féin/meta/color" |     Martin McGuinness Template:Sinn Féin/meta/shortname 8 May 2007

Direct rule ministers

During the periods of suspension, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland assumed the responsibilities of the First Minister and deputy First Minister.

See also

References

  1. ^ Policing and Justice Process Paper Northern Ireland Executive
  2. ^ Devolved Government - Ministers and their departments Northern Ireland Executive
  3. ^ Paisley to quit as first minister BBC News, 4 March 2008
  4. ^ Robinson confirmed as DUP leader BBC News, 17 April 2008
  5. ^ UTV Live
  6. ^ a b Ministers Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister
  7. ^ Belfast Telegraph[dead link]
  8. ^ Martin's D-lemma: lowering the case of the minister's title took top aides weeks Belfast Telegraph, 21 March 2008
  9. ^ a b c d e Are all things created equal? BBC News, 17 February 2009
  10. ^ Assembly Members Sinn Féin
  11. ^ Our conjoined ministers BBC News - The Devenport Diaries, 19 February 2009
  12. ^ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Commencement) Order 2000
  13. ^ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Restoration of Devolved Government) Order 2000
  14. ^ Article 1, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Suspension of Devolved Government) Order 2002
  15. ^ Historic return for NI Assembly BBC News, 8 May 2007
  16. ^ Entries under 10 August and 21 September 2001, Northern Ireland chronology: 2001 BBC News, 9 April 2003
  17. ^ Article 1, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Suspension of Devolved Government) Order 2001
  18. ^ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Restoration of Devolved Government) Order 2001
  19. ^ Article 1, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Suspension of Devolved Government) (No.2) Order 2001
  20. ^ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Restoration of Devolved Government) (No.2) Order 2001
  21. ^ a b Office suspended for 24 hours on 11 August 2001 and 22 September 2001

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=First_Minister_and_deputy_First_Minister_of_Northern_Ireland&oldid=403620333"