The Statutory Basis of the Assembly

The NI Assembly is a legislature which came into being through a devolution settlement from the UK Parliament.  This settlement was informed by the terms of the intergovernmental peace agreement known as the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement of that year, and given legal effect in the Northern Ireland Act 1998.

The legislature works on a consociational model, which means it is a power-sharing Assembly with provisions to ensure joint decision-making by Unionists and Nationalists. This approach is characterised by community safeguards such as petitions of concern and cross-community voting in some instances.

Procedural rules to guide these processes are known as the Standing Orders of the Assembly. They describe the process, timeframes and other requirements for making primary legislation.