The Health Protection (Coronavirus Restrictions) (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2020

Information Standards Freedom of Information Response

Our Ref: FoI 25-20

21 May 2020

Freedom of Information Act 2000

I can confirm that the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission holds information relevant to your request of 11 May 2020.  In your request you asked for the following information:

“The Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA) brought the substantive articles of the European Convention Human Rights (ECHR) into UK Law and the Belfast Agreement contained a comprehensive suite of Human Rights safeguards including the introduction of the ECHR in Northern Ireland.

The Northern Ireland Act sets out the legislative competence of the Northern Ireland Assembly and states that the Assembly may not legislate in a manner that conflicts with the ECHR.

Please advise me if The Health Protection, (Corona Virus, Restrictions), (Northern Ireland) Regulations 2020 have been passed in the Legislative Assembly as being compatible and in compliance with the ECHR?”

Information relating to your request can be found on the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission website and is therefore exempt under Section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. Under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission is not required to provide information that is already available in a form accessible by the public.

I have set out below links to the website related to S.R. 2020/55, The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2020 (the Regulations).

Here is a link to the plenary debate in respect of the Regulations. I have also attached minutes from the meeting of the Committee for Health at which the Regulations were considered. Here is a link to the Seventh Report of the Examiner of Statutory Rules of 17 April 2020 who has provided technical scrutiny on the Regulations.

If you feel that the information we have provided does not meet your request fully, please contact this office as soon as possible.  You have the right to request a formal review by the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission and if you wish to do so, please write to me at the above address.

If after such an internal review you are still unhappy with the response, you have the right to appeal to the Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF who will undertake an independent review.

If you have any queries about this letter, please contact me.  Please remember to quote the reference number above.

Yours sincerely

INFORMATION STANDARDS