Northern Ireland Act 1998

14 Submission by Secretary of State. U.K.

(1) It shall be the Secretary of State who submits Bills for Royal Assent.

(2) The Secretary of State shall not submit a Bill for Royal Assent at any time when—

(a) [F1 the Advocate General for Northern Ireland or] the Attorney General for Northern Ireland is entitled to make a reference in relation to a provision of the Bill under section 11; or

(b) any such reference has been made but has not been decided or otherwise disposed of by the [F2 Supreme Court] .

(3) If—

(a) the [F3 Supreme Court has] decided that any provision of a Bill would not be within the legislative competence of the Assembly; F4 . . .

F4 (b) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

the Secretary of State shall not submit the Bill in its unamended form for Royal Assent.

[F5 (3A) The Secretary of State shall not submit a Bill for Royal Assent if the Assembly has passed the Bill in contravention of section 7A (cross-community support required for Bill altering size of Assembly).]

(4) The Secretary of State may, unless he consents to it, decide not to submit for Royal Assent a Bill containing a provision—

(a) which the Secretary of State considers 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) which the Secretary of State considers deals with a reserved matter,

if the Bill has not been referred to him under subsection (2) of section 10 (whether by virtue of subsection (3)(a) of that section or otherwise) before the Assembly enters on its final stage.

(5) The Secretary of State may decide not to submit for Royal Assent a Bill which contains a provision which he considers—

(a) would be incompatible with any international obligations, with the interests of defence or national security or with the protection of public safety or public order; or

(b) would have an adverse effect on the operation of the single market in goods and services within the United Kingdom.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in s. 14(2)(a) inserted (12.4.2010) by Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2002 (c. 26), s. 87(1), Sch. 7 para. 1(4); S.R. 2010/113, art. 2, Sch. para. 19(a)

F2 Words in s. 14(2)(b) substituted (1.10.2009) by Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (c. 4), ss. 40, 148, Sch. 9 para. 112(a); S.I. 2009/1604, art. 2(a)(d)

F3 Words in s. 14(3)(a) substituted (1.10.2009) by Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (c. 4), ss. 40, 148, Sch. 9 para. 112(b); S.I. 2009/1604, art. 2(a)(d)

F4 S. 14(3)(b) and word omitted (31.12.2020) by virtue of European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (c. 16), s. 25(4), Sch. 3 para. 54 (with s. 19, Sch. 8 para. 37); S.I. 2020/1622, reg. 3(l) (with regs. 10, 16, 22)

F5 S. 14(3A) inserted (13.5.2014) by Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2014 (c. 13), ss. 6(4), 28(4)