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Northern Ireland Act 1998
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20 The Executive Committee.U.K.
(1)There shall be an Executive Committee of each Assembly consisting of the First Minister, the deputy First Minister and the Northern Ireland Ministers.
(2)The First Minister and the deputy First Minister shall be chairmen of the Committee.
(3)The Committee shall have the functions set out in paragraphs 19 and 20 of Strand One of the Belfast Agreement.
[F1(4)The Committee shall also have the function of discussing and agreeing upon—
[F2(a)where the agreed programme referred to in paragraph 20 of Strand One of that Agreement has been approved by the Assembly and is in force, any significant or controversial matters that are clearly outside the scope of that programme;
(aa)where no such programme has been approved by the Assembly, any significant or controversial matters;]
(b)significant or controversial matters that the First Minister and deputy First Minister acting jointly have determined to be matters that should be considered by the Executive Committee.]
[F3(5)Subsections (3) and (4) are subject to [F4subsections (6) to (9)].
(6)Quasi-judicial decisions may be made by the Department of Justice or the Minister in charge of that Department without recourse to the Executive Committee.]
[F5(7)Decisions may be made by the Department for Infrastructure or the Minister in charge of that Department in the exercise of any function under—
(a)the Planning Act (Northern Ireland) 2011 (except a function under section 1 of that Act); or
(b)regulations or orders made under that Act,
without recourse to the Executive Committee.
(8)Nothing in subsection (3) requires a Minister to have recourse to the Executive Committee in relation to any matter unless that matter affects the exercise of the statutory responsibilities of one or more other Ministers more than incidentally.
(9)A matter does not affect the exercise of the statutory responsibilities of a Minister more than incidentally only because there is a statutory requirement to consult that Minister.]
Textual Amendments
F1S. 20(4) inserted (8.5.2007) by Northern Ireland (St Andrews Agreement) Act 2006 (c. 53), ss. 2(2), 5(1), 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
F2S. 20(4)(a)(aa) substituted for s. 20(4)(a) (N.I.) (26.8.2020) by Executive Committee (Functions) Act (Northern Ireland) 2020 (c. 4), ss. 1 (2), 2,
F3S. 20(5)(6) inserted (12.4.2010) by The Northern Ireland Act 1998 (Devolution of Policing and Justice Functions) Order 2010 (S.I. 2010/976), arts. 1(2), 23 (with arts. 28-31)
F4Words in s. 20(5) substituted (N.I.) (26.8.2020) by Executive Committee (Functions) Act (Northern Ireland) 2020 (c. 4), ss. 1(3), 2
F5S. 20(7)-(9) inserted (N.I.) (26.8.2020) by Executive Committee (Functions) Act (Northern Ireland) 2020 (c. 4), ss. 1(4), 2
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