Draft Order laid before the Assembly under section 102(5) of the Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 2015 for approval
2017 No.
Justice
The Witness Charter (Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 2015) Order (Northern Ireland) 2017
Made ***

The Department of Justice, in exercise of the powers conferred by section 31(3) of the Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 2015, makes the following Order.
2015 c.9 (N.I.).
In accordance with section 30(1) of the Act the Department has issued a Witness Charter.
In accordance with section 31(2) of the Act the Department laid the Witness Charter before the Assembly on 9th January 2017.

1 Citation
This Order may be cited as the Witness Charter (Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 2015) Order (Northern Ireland) 2017.

2 Interpretation
In this Order “the Act” means the Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 2015.

3 Date on which the Witness Charter comes into operation
The day appointed for the purposes of section 31(3) of the Act (procedure for issuing Charters) for the coming into operation of the Witness Charter is 31st March 2017.
Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department of Justice on
Claire Sugden Minister of Justice

EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the Order)
This Order brings the Witness Charter, which has been prepared and issued by the Department of Justice, into operation on 31st March 2017. The Charter is laid before the Assembly with this Order.
The Witness Charter sets out the services which are to be provided to witnesses of criminal conduct, by a range by criminal justice service providers in Northern Ireland, and the entitlements that will apply. It also sets out how witnesses will be dealt with by defence legal representatives.
The Order and Explanatory Memorandum can be found at www.legislation.gov.uk. The Charter is available on the Department of Justice website.