| Northern Ireland Assembly | |
| Coa Res: | 100px |
| House Type: | Unicameral |
| Legislature: | Devolved Assembly |
| Established: | 3 May 1973 |
| Disbanded: | 28 May 1974 (Ceased to function), 28 March 1975 (Formally dissolved) |
| Voting System1: | STV |
| Session Room: | StormontGeneral.jpg |
| Session Res: | 220px |
| Meeting Place: | Parliament Buildings, Stormont, Belfast |
| Preceded By: | Parliament of Northern Ireland |
| Succeeded By: | Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention |
The Northern Ireland Assembly was a legislative assembly set up by the Government of the United Kingdom on 3 May 1973 to restore devolved government to Northern Ireland with the power-sharing Northern Ireland Executive made up of unionists and nationalists. It was dissolved in March 1975.
| Short Title: | Northern Ireland Assembly Act 1973 |
| Type: | Act |
| Parliament: | Parliament of the United Kingdom |
| Long Title: | An Act to establish a Northern Ireland Assembly and to provide for election to that Assembly. |
| Year: | 1973 |
| Citation: | 1973 c. 17 |
| Royal Assent: | 3 May 1973 |
| Repeal Date: | 2 December 1999 |
| Repealing Legislation: | Northern Ireland Act 1998 |
| Status: | repealed |
| Original Text: | https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1973/17/contents/enacted |
| Collapsed: | yes |
The Assembly was created by section 1 of the Northern Ireland Assembly Act 1973.[1] Elections were held on 28 June 1973.[2] The Northern Ireland Constitution Act 1973, which received royal assent on 18 July 1973, abolished the suspended Parliament of Northern Ireland and the post of Governor and made provision for a devolved administration consisting of an Executive chosen by the Assembly.[3] 108 members were elected by Single Transferable Vote from Northern Ireland's 12 Westminster constituencies, with 5 to 8 seats for each depending on its population.
The Assembly met for the first time on 31 July 1973. Following the Sunningdale Agreement, a power-sharing Executive was established from 1 January 1974. After opposition from within the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) and the Ulster Workers' Council strike over the proposal of an all Ireland council, the Executive and Assembly collapsed on 28 May 1974 when Brian Faulkner resigned as Chief Executive. The Assembly was prorogued the following day,[4] but continued to exist in abeyance until formally dissolved on 28 March 1975, via an Order in Council made under the Northern Ireland Act 1974.[5]
See main article: Northern Ireland Executive (1974).
| Office | Name | Term | Party | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chief Executive | Brian Faulkner | 1974 | UUP | ||
| Deputy Chief Executive | Gerry Fitt | 1974 | SDLP | ||
| Minister of Agriculture | Leslie Morrell | 1974 | UUP | ||
| Minister of Commerce | John Hume | 1974 | SDLP | ||
| Minister of Education | Basil McIvor | 1974 | UUP | ||
| Minister of the Environment | Roy Bradford | 1974 | UUP | ||
| Minister of Finance | Herbert Kirk | 1974 | UUP | ||
| Minister of Health and Social Services | Paddy Devlin | 1974 | SDLP | ||
| Minister of Housing, Local Government and Planning | Austin Currie | 1974 | SDLP | ||
| Minister of Information | John Baxter | 1974 | UUP | ||
| Legal Minister and Head of the Office of Law Reform | Oliver Napier | 1974 | Alliance | ||
The Assembly had powers to pass primary legislation known as Assembly Measures. Four such measures were passed by the assembly: