Proceedings of the Committee on the Preparation for Government

23 August 2006

Minutes of the meeting held on Wednesday, 23 August 2006 in Room 144, Parliament Buildings.

In the Chair: Francie Molloy

Present: Alex Attwood
Fred Cobain
Danny Kennedy
Alban Maginness
Fra McCann
Raymond McCartney
Sean Neeson
Peter Weir
Sammy Wilson MP

In Attendance: Nuala Dunwoody (Clerk Assistant)
Martin Wilson (Principal Clerk)
Debbie Pritchard (Principal Clerk)
Neil Currie (Assistant Clerk)
Gillian Lyness (Assistant Clerk)
David Douglas (Clerical Officer)
Tim Moore (Senior Researcher)

Observing: Aodhan Mac Ant Saoir (Sinn Fein researcher)
Philip Weir (DUP researcher)
Mark Neal (UUPAG researcher)
Stephen Farry ( Alliance researcher)

The meeting commenced at 10.05am.

1. Apologies

Mr Durkan MP (Mr Maginness attended the meeting as SDLP representative in place of Mr Durkan MP)

Dr Farren (Mr Attwood attended the meeting as SDLP representative in place of Dr Farren)

Mr Ford (Mr Neeson attended the meeting as Alliance representative in place of Mr Ford)

Dr McCrea MP (Mr Weir attended the meeting as DUP representative in place of Dr McCrea MP)

Mr McGuinness MP (Mr McCartney attended the meeting as Sinn Fein representative in place of Mr McGuinness MP)

Mr McNarry (Mr Cobain attended the meeting as UUPAG representative in place of Mr McNarry)

Mr Murphy MP (Mr McCann attended the meeting as Sinn Fein representative in place of Mr Murphy MP)

Mr Paisley (Mr Wilson MP attended the meeting as DUP representative in place of Mr Paisley)

2. Declaration of Interests

Raymond McCartney declared the following interests: – his brother is a member of a Community Restorative Justice group.

3. Previous Minutes

The minutes of the meeting of 16 August 2006 were agreed.

4. Matters arising

• Letter from the Secretary of State dated 22 August 2006

It was agreed that the Secretary of State be asked to make himself available to the Committee before mid-September.

Mr Wilson joined the meeting at 10.24am.

It was agreed that the Secretary of State be asked to indicate when he might be able to share with the parties the developmental work that is in hand, in relation to national security accountability.

It was agreed that the Secretary of State be asked to provide an indicative list of all the powers the army might require post normalisation.

It was agreed that the Secretary of State be asked to provide a definition of ‘normalisation’ and ‘ceasefire’.

• Firearms and Explosives

It was agreed that responsibility for explosives licensing should rest with the Minister responsible for public safety.

It was agreed to defer further consideration of firearms and explosives to the meeting on 30 August.

• Policing Issues

Mr Maginness proposed that policing and justice be devolved immediately on formation of an Executive and if not, within 6 months of that formation. There was not consensus and the proposal fell.

Mr Wilson proposed that all parties support the devolution of policing and justice powers as soon as community confidence exists. There was not consensus and the proposal fell.

5. Discussion on Justice Issues

Mr Weir left the meeting at 12.21pm.

The meeting was suspended at 12.21pm.

The meeting reconvened at 12.46pm.

Mr Attwood proposed that this Committee agrees that there should be a full range of the highest safeguards and standards covering Community Restorative Justice schemes including an independent statute based complaints system, accreditation from and training governed by an independent and dedicated agency, independent oversight mechanisms and all appropriate powers, referrals to the scheme by the justice system and that the protocol should govern all work of schemes. There was not consensus and the proposal fell.

Mr Attwood proposed that the Committee believes that acceptance of the rule of law and full co-operation with police and justice agencies is essential to the proper working of Community Restorative Justice schemes and public confidence. There was not consensus and the proposal fell.

Mr Wilson proposed that vetting for anyone working on Community Restorative Justice schemes should be carried out by the police. There was not consensus and the proposal fell.

Mr McCann proposed that the Committee request written evidence from Community Restorative Justice groups. There was not consensus and the proposal fell.

It was agreed that the Committee condemns the practice of exiling and calls for it to be ceased forthwith.

It was agreed that the Committee notes the work of the Youth Justice Agency in youth conferencing and the Probation Board in dealing with offenders.

Mr Wilson proposed that the Committee believes that for parties to be included in Government they have to support the institutions of the police and encourage the public to support the police. There was not consensus and the proposal fell.

It was agreed to defer to the meeting on 30 August, two further proposals from Mr Attwood.

6. Any Other Business

Ministerial Pledge of Office

At the PfG Committee meeting on 14 August dealing with the Institutions, it was agreed to refer to this meeting for consideration the suggestion that the Pledge of Office should incorporate support for the rule of law.

The Committee discussed the matter, but no proposals were made.

7. Next Meeting

The Committee will next meet at 10.00am on Friday, 25 August 2006 in Room 144, Parliament Buildings to discuss issues relating to Rights; Safeguards; Equality and Victims.

It was agreed that the meeting on Wednesday, 30 August 2006 would be an all-day meeting with lunch provided.

The meeting adjourned at 1.27pm.