Research and Information Service

Proposed Reform of Employment Rights in Great Britain and Northern Ireland: a comparative perspective
This Briefing Paper provides a comparative perspective of reforms to employment rights for employees and workers announced in the Department for the Economy (DfE) Employment Rights Bill Public Consultation Response document “Good Jobs” Employment Bill: Way Forward . It is prepared at the request of the Committee for the Economy (the Committee) and aims to inform the Committee’s consideration of the forthcoming Department for the Economy “Good Jobs” Employment Bill (due to be introduced in 2026). 

Justice Bill: Rehabilitation of Offenders Amendments
This paper provides an overview of the amendments to the Justice Bill relating to the reform of rehabilitation periods contained in the Rehabilitation of Offenders (Northern Ireland) Order 1978.

The Reservoirs Act (Northern Ireland) 2015 – an overview and progress to date
This briefing paper provides an overview of the development and implementation of the provisions within the Reservoirs Act (Northern Ireland) 2015.  It considers key developments within the broad reference period of 2007 to 2025. The paper utilises a time-based approach, with individual sections focused on the first instance of a broad activity area such as reservoir audit activity for example.

Social Enterprises: International Best Practice
This Briefing Paper – commissioned by the Committee for the Economy – considers international best practice in supporting Social Enterprises through government policy and legislation. It includes select case studies of representative organisations in Scotland, the Netherlands, United States and Spain implementing same and identifies key takeaways.

Justice Bill: Restorative Justice Amendments
This paper provides an overview of the amendments to the Justice Bill relating to the transfer of powers and functions contained in section 43 of the Justice and Security (Northern Ireland) Act 2007 on restorative justice schemes from the Secretary of State to the Department of Justice.

Public Estate Value to Society
This Research Paper examines the approach to valuation of public land assets, such as the public estate, within Northern Ireland. It does not attempt to perform valuation of the public estate. Instead an internationally popular framework to manage these complexities as part of decision and policy making processes – natural capital and ecosystem services approach – is introduced and discussed as a concept. Relevant examples where this approach has been applied are discussed with respect to Northern Ireland and other jurisdictions.

Institutional Review Committees
The Assembly and Executive Review Committee (AERC) asked for a comparative paper on institutional review committees to inform its strategic direction for the remainder of the current mandate.
This paper provides an update on a previous, similar paper prepared for the AERC in June 2020.

Assembly & Executive reform – a literature review
This briefing paper has been prepared following a request from the Assembly & Executive Review Committee (AERC). The committee asked for a literature review to identify relevant, recent research that considers reform of the political institutions in Northern Ireland. The committee also asked the research to identify additional expert witnesses and other stakeholders from which the committee might receive supplementary evidence.

School Uniforms (Guidelines and Allowances) Bill
This Bill Paper provides an overview of the School Uniforms (Guidelines and Allowances) Bill, as introduced to the Assembly on 18 February 2025. It compares similar provisions in Great Britain and the Republic of Ireland and also identifies a number of issues that may merit further consideration by the Committee

Use of AI in Legislatures
This briefing paper looks at how Artificial Intelligence (AI) is being utilised in parliamentary contexts. It provides examples of parliamentary tasks being performed by AI and discusses the potential pros and cons of its use.

Private financing & capital redevelopment projects in government
This Briefing Paper provides an overview of various financial tools to support public sector capital redevelopment, that could provide an alternative to Financial Transactions Capital (FTC) in Northern Ireland. It should be read in conjunction with Briefing Paper NIAR 26-2025, which sets out the level of FTC activity in Northern Ireland and the challenges associated with it.

Financial Transaction Capital: Usage and Challenges

This Briefing Paper aims to help inform the Committee for Finance’s consideration of Financial Transactions Capital (FTC) - in particular: government use of FTC in Northern Ireland, when compared to that in Great Britain; challenges associated with such use; and, any identified best practice in the area.

Community Asset Transfer – provisions and support within the UK and Ireland

This briefing note provides an overview of legislative provisions and associated support across the UK and Ireland with regard to community asset transfer. Community Asset Transfer (CAT) is a process that allows a community organisation to take over publicly-owned land or buildings in a way that recognises the public benefits that the transfer will bring.

Overview of devolved powers in the UK
This briefing paper has been prepared following a request from the Ad Hoc Committee on the Assembly Members (Remuneration Board) Bill. The committee asked for an overview of those powers devolved to the Northern Ireland Assembly, Scottish Parliament and Senedd.

Community Wealth Building

This Briefing Paper – commissioned by the Committee for Finance – explains the development and implementation of Community Wealth Building measures in neighbouring jurisdictions in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.

Generative Artificial Intelligence in the Education System
This research paper considers the emergence of generative AI (GenAI) technology. It examines the regulatory landscape and policy approaches towards GenAI in education at the global, UK and Northern Ireland level. It outlines the opportunities and challenges to Northern Ireland’s education system in light of current research and stakeholder perspectives.

Responses to Historical Abuse in Great Britain
This paper provides an overview of the processes carried out by relevant Governments in response to historical institutional abuse in Scotland, England and Wales. It summarises those processes already undertaken, ongoing and proposed, including redress schemes and public inquiries. This paper contains references to sexual, physical and emotional abuse, including in relation to children.

Current Provision of Palliative and End of Life Care Services in Northern Ireland
This briefing is the second of a series of papers on palliative and end of life care in Northern Ireland. It provides information on the current provisions, quality and experience of care and public perceptions and barriers.

Credit Unions in Northern Ireland: a preliminary consideration

This Briefing Paper presents a preliminary consideration of key issues regarding reforming financial services currently offered by credit unions in Northern Ireland.

Introduction to palliative and end of life care in Northern Ireland
This briefing is the first of a series of papers on palliative and end of life care in Northern Ireland. It provides background, context and an overview of the policy landscape.

European Commission Work Programme 2025 'New' and 'Replacement' EU Acts
This paper seeks to inform the work of the Windsor Framework Democratic Scrutiny Committee by identifying those initiatives or proposals in the European Commission work programme 2025 which are potentially either ‘replacement acts’ or ‘new acts’ under the Windsor Framework.

Justice Bill: Biometrics Amendments

This paper provides an overview of the amendments to the Justice Bill relating to biometrics.This set of amendments covers the additional provisions relating to Part One on the framework for the retention and destruction of DNA and fingerprints in Northern Ireland.

Sign Language Bill (Northern Ireland) 2025
This paper provides Members with analysis of the Sign Language Bill (Northern Ireland) 2025, introduced to the Assembly on 10 February 2025. It includes recommendations for further scrutiny and draws comparisons with equivalent legislation in Great Britain and Ireland.

Public Spend per head: A comparative perspective
This briefing paper, commissioned by the Assembly’s Committee for Finance, provides comparative research on public spend per person within the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.

Proxy voting – bereavement and absence on parliamentary business 
This briefing paper has been prepared following a request from the Committee on Procedures. The committee asked for information on the provision for proxy voting in other legislatures for reasons of bereavement. In addition, the research looked for examples where proxy voting is available to members who are absent on official parliamentary business. 

Members' Pay and Allowances: regimes and provisions
This briefing paper has been prepared to inform the work of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Assembly Members (Remuneration Board) Bill. It provides information on the main aspects of regimes governing the pay and allowances of members of the Senedd, Scottish Parliament, House of Commons, Dáil Eireann and Seanad Éireann.

Educational underachievement in Northern Ireland

This paper considers the persistence of the educational attainment gap between socially disadvantaged pupils and all others. This includes an examination of existing policies to tackle the attainment gap, more recent proposals to raise educational outcomes for all, and how other jurisdictions are dealing with the same issue.

Planning Applications and Flood Risk
This paper is in response to a request from the Committee for Infrastructure seeking information on the number of residential dwellings given planning permission in areas of flood risk in Northern Ireland.
The paper sets out the methodology, provides a series of maps using published data from the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) Planning statistics 2023/24, and current (as of November 2024) NI Flood Maps data.  

Northern Ireland Economy and the Budget: initial considerations for 2025/26
This Briefing Paper aims to facilitate the Committee for Economy, to help inform its deliberations on boosting the Northern Ireland economy in 2025/26, within the challenging budgetary and economic contexts and existing/planned Department for Economy policies and implementation strategies, plans, programmes and initiatives arising under the Department’s Economic Vision and other.

International Migration in Northern Ireland: an Update
Around 293,000 long-term international migrants are estimated to have arrived in Northern Ireland between the years 2001 and 2023.  This paper, which focuses on migration stocks and migration flows in and out of Northern Ireland, updates a previous paper (NIAR 56-17) and describes the key elements of this significant demographic change.

Comparative Overview: Non-Domestic Rating Systems across the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland
This Briefing Paper compares existing key provisions of Non-Domestic Rating and its equivalents under current legislation in Northern Ireland, England, Wales, Scotland and the Republic of Ireland; and highlights any recent reform-related developments and announcements.

Comparative Overview: Domestic Rating Systems across the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland
This Briefing Paper compares existing key provisions of domestic rating and its equivalents under current legislation in Northern Ireland, England, Wales, Scotland and the Republic of Ireland; and highlights any recent reform-related developments and announcements.

Proxy voting - long-term illness

This briefing paper has been prepared following a request from the Committee on Procedures. The committee asked for information on the provision for proxy voting in other legislatures for reasons of long-term illness. The research looked at the Scottish Parliament, Senedd and House of Commons. There is currently no provision for proxy voting in Dáil Eireann.

Approaches to inter-parliamentary and international engagement in other legislatures
This briefing paper has been prepared for the Assembly and Executive Review Committee. It sets out the arrangements for international and inter-parliamentary engagement in the Scottish Parliament, Senedd, House of Commons and the Oireachtas.

Scrutiny and Presentation of Parliamentary Corporate Body Budgets and Estimates: A comparative perspective
This Briefing Paper, commissioned by the Assembly's Audit Committee provides comparative research on the scrutiny and presentation of the budgets and estimates of the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission - a parliamentary corporate body - and its counterparts within the United Kingdom.

Mutual Banking in Northern Ireland: preliminary considerations
This Briefing Paper outlines key issues regarding the potential introduction of a “mutual banking” ownership model in Northern Ireland. It is prepared at the request of the Committee for Finance (the Committee), as part of the Committee’s ongoing review of the financial services landscape in Northern Ireland. It follows on from a previous RaISe paper prepared for the Committee’s review -  NIAR 151-24 Current Financial Services Landscape in Northern Ireland: preliminary considerations - which highlighted key themes concerning access to cash services for customers in Northern Ireland after recent bank branch closures.

An Overview of the Current Skills Landscape in the Republic of Ireland
This Briefing Paper provides an overview of the current skills landscape in the Republic of Ireland. It is prepared at the request of the Public Accounts Committee (the PAC), as part of an ongoing review of the skills system in Northern Ireland. It is the second of such briefings prepared by RaISe. The previous paper, NIAR 249-24 Addressing Public Sector Skills Gaps, was published in November 2024. 

The Agriculture Bill (Northern Ireland) 2024
This Bill paper provides an overview of the Agriculture Bill (Northern Ireland) 2024 as introduced to the Assembly on 25 November 2024. The paper also identifies those areas within the Bill which may merit further consideration and, where relevant, compares similar provisions within GB and Ireland.

The regulation of gambling in Northern Ireland and key developments in other jurisdictions
This paper provides an overview of the regulatory framework for gambling in Northern Ireland including the regulation of online gambling.  It also explores recent developments in gambling law and policy in Great Britain and the Republic of Ireland.

Regulating gambling advertisements in Northern Ireland
A description of who regulates broadcast and online gambling advertisements in Northern Ireland, and consideration of how the Online Safety Act 2023 extends to Northern Ireland for the advertisement of gambling.

Republic of Ireland: Biometric Data and Policing 
This Briefing Paper provides further information for the Justice Committee in relation to the approach taken to the retention and destruction of biometric data in the Republic of Ireland held by the Garda Síochána.