Statutory Rules of Northern Ireland
FAIR EMPLOYMENT
Made
30th November 2004
Coming into operation
1st January 2005
Whereas, in accordance with Article 50(3) of the Fair Employment and Treatment (Northern Ireland) Order 1998(1) (“the 1998 Order”), each person who, by virtue of the following Order, becomes a public authority for any of the purposes of Articles 52 to 65 of the 1998 Order is:
(1) a Minister of the Crown or a Northern Ireland Minister;
(2) a statutory body or the holder of a statutory office; or
(3) a person appearing to the Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister(2) (“the Department”) to exercise functions of a public nature;
And whereas, in accordance with Article 51(4) of the 1998 Order, it appears to the Department that some or all of the people who are employed by each person, who by virtue of the following Order becomes an employer for the purposes of Articles 52 to 61 of the 1998 Order, who are in the service of the Crown for the purposes of the functions of those persons or who are treated by virtue of the following Order as so employed or as in such service, are employed or serve in Northern Ireland:
Now, therefore, the Department in exercise of the powers conferred by Article 50(1) and (2) and Article 51(2) of the 1998 Order and now vested in it(3) and of every other power enabling it in that behalf, hereby makes the following Order:
1.—(1) This Order may be cited as the Fair Employment (Specification of Public Authorities) Order (Northern Ireland) 2004 and shall come into operation on 1st January 2005.
(2) In this Order –
“the 1998 Order” means the Fair Employment and Treatment (Northern Ireland) Order 1998;
“member of the home service forces” means any member of the armed forces whose service (or service otherwise than for the purposes of training) is restricted to Northern Ireland;
“Northern Ireland civil servant” means any person appointed to a situation in the Northern Ireland Civil Service;
“police” has the same meaning as in the Police (Northern Ireland) Act 2000(4);
“reserve force” means a reserve force within the meaning of section 1(2) of the Reserve Forces Act 1996(5);
“reservist” means a member of any reserve force who serves wholly or mainly in Northern Ireland; and
“United Kingdom civil servant” means any person serving wholly or mainly in Northern Ireland in the civil service of the Crown other than a Northern Ireland civil servant.
2. For the purposes of Articles 52 to 61 of the 1998 Order: –
(a)the Minister for the Department of Finance and Personnel shall be a public authority and all Northern Ireland civil servants shall be treated as employees of that authority;
(b)the Minister for the Civil Service shall be a public authority and all United Kingdom civil servants shall be treated as employees of that authority;
(c)the Secretary of State for Defence shall be a public authority and all reservists and members of the home service forces shall be treated as employees of that authority; and
(d)the Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland shall be a public authority and all members of the police shall be treated as employees of that authority.
3. Each of the persons specified in Part I of the Schedule shall be a public authority for the purposes of Articles 52 to 65 of the 1998 Order.
4. Each of the persons specified in Part II of the Schedule shall be a public authority for the purposes of Articles 62 to 65 of the 1998 Order.
5. The following Orders are hereby revoked –
(a)the Fair Employment (Specification of Public Authorities) (No. 2) Order (Northern Ireland) 2000(6);
(b)the Fair Employment (Specification of Public Authorities) (Amendment) Order (Northern Ireland) 2003(7).
Sealed with the Official Seal of the Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister on 30th November 2004.
L.S.
Gerard Mulligan
A senior officer of the Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister
Articles 3 and 4
Textual Amendments
Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute
Arts Council of Northern Ireland
Belfast Harbour Commissioners
Belfast Health and Social Care Trust
The Big Lottery Fund
Board of Trustees of the National Museums and Galleries of Northern Ireland
British Broadcasting Corporation
Charity Commission for Northern Ireland
Chief Electoral Officer for Northern Ireland
Chief Inspector of Criminal Justice in Northern Ireland
Children’s Court Guardian Agency for Northern Ireland
Citybus Limited
Coleraine Harbour Commissioners
Commission for Victims and Survivors for Northern Ireland
Commissioner for Children and Young People for Northern Ireland
Commissioner for Older People for Northern Ireland
Commissioner for Survivors of Institutional Childhood Abuse
Comptroller and Auditor General for Northern Ireland
Construction Industry Training Board
Council for Catholic Maintained Schools
Any District Council
The Education Authority
Equality Commission for Northern Ireland
Foyle, Carlingford and Irish Lights Commission
General Consumer Council for Northern Ireland
General Teaching Council for Northern Ireland
The Governing Body of Belfast Metropolitan College
The Governing Body of North West Regional College
The Governing Body of Northern Regional College
The Governing Body of South Eastern Regional College
The Governing Body of South West College
The Governing Body of Southern Regional College
The Governing Body of Stranmillis University College, Belfast
Governors of the Armagh Observatory and Planetarium
Health and Social Care Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority
Historical Institutional Abuse Redress Board
The Independent Commission for Reconciliation and Information Recovery
Information Commissioner’s Office
Invest Northern Ireland
Labour Relations Agency
Livestock and Meat Commission for Northern Ireland
Local Government Staff Commission for Northern Ireland
Londonderry Port and Harbour Commissioners
Middletown Centre for Autism Limited
The National Heritage Memorial Fund
The North/South Language Body
Northern Health and Social Care Trust
Northern Ireland Ambulance Service Health and Social Care Trust
Northern Ireland Assembly Commission
Northern Ireland Authority for Utility Regulation
Northern Ireland Blood Transfusion Service (Special Agency)
Northern Ireland Community Relations Council
Northern Ireland Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment
Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service Board
Northern Ireland Fishery Harbour Authority
Northern Ireland Housing Executive
Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission
Northern Ireland Judicial Appointments Commission
Northern Ireland Library Authority
Northern Ireland Local Government Officers’ Superannuation Committee
Northern Ireland Medical and Dental Training Agency
Northern Ireland Museums Council
Northern Ireland Policing Board
Northern Ireland Practice and Education Council for Nursing and Midwifery
Northern Ireland Public Services Ombudsman
Northern Ireland Railways Company Limited
Northern Ireland Screen Commission
Northern Ireland Social Care Council
Northern Ireland Tourist Board
Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company
Northern Ireland Water Alpha Limited
Northern Ireland Water Limited
Office of Communications
Patient and Client Council
The Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland
Police Rehabilitation and Retraining Trust
Probation Board for Northern Ireland
Regional Agency for Public Health and Social Well-being
Regional Business Services Organisation
Royal Mail Group Limited
South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust
Southern Health and Social Care Trust
The Special EU Programmes Body
Sports Council for Northern Ireland
State Pathologist’s Department
Strategic Investment Board Limited
Tourism Ireland Limited
The Trade and Business Development Body
Ulster Supported Employment Limited
Ulsterbus Limited
Victims and Survivors Service Limited
Warrenpoint Harbour Authority
Waterways Ireland
Western Health and Social Care Trust
Youth Council for Northern Ireland
The Secretary of State
Any Northern Ireland Department
Any Northern Ireland Minister
Commissioners for His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs
The Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland
The Controller of His Majesty’s Stationery Office
The Director of Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland
Director of Savings
Food Standards Agency
Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland]
(This note is not part of the Order.)
This Order specifies a number of persons or bodies as public authorities for certain purposes under Part VII of the Fair Employment and Treatment (Northern Ireland) Order 1998 (“the 1998 Order”) and provides for the persons who are to be treated for such purposes as the employees of some of those authorities.
For the purpose of Articles 52 to 61 of the 1998 Order, Article 2 –
(a)specifies the Minister for the Department of Finance and Personnel as a public authority and provides that all Northern Ireland civil servants (as defined) shall be treated as employees of that authority;
(b)specifies the Minister for the Civil Service as a public authority and provides that all United Kingdom civil servants (as defined) shall be treated as employees of that authority;
(c)specifies the Secretary of State for Defence as a public authority and provides that all reservists and members of the home service forces (as defined) shall be treated as employees of that authority; and
(d)specifies the Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland as a public authority and provides that all members of the police (as defined) shall be treated as employees of that authority.
Article 3 specifies each of the persons listed in Part I of the Schedule as a public authority for the purposes of Articles 52 to 65 of the 1998 Order.
Article 4 specifies each of the persons listed in Part II of the Schedule as a public authority for the purposes of Articles 62 to 65 of the 1998 Order.
Where a person who is specified as a public authority for the purposes of Articles 52 to 61 of the 1998 Order is the employer, or by virtue of Article 2 becomes the employer, of certain persons then Part VII of the 1998 Order imposes certain duties on him, particularly with respect to those persons. He is required to prepare and serve for each year on the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland (“the Commission”) a return (referred to as a “monitoring return”) to enable the composition of his workforce to be ascertained; that is to say the number who belong to the Protestant community and the number who belong to the Roman Catholic community in Northern Ireland. In addition the monitoring return he is required to serve must show the composition of applicants for employment in his workforce and the composition of those ceasing to be employed by him. Other provisions of Articles 52 to 61 of the 1998 Order such as those requiring periodic review of recruitment, training and promotion practices; those relating to enquiries by the Commission and undertakings by and directions to employers; and those providing for the setting of goals and timetables also apply to public authorities specified for the purposes of those Articles.
Where a public authority is specified for the purposes of Articles 62 to 65 of the 1998 Order it is prohibited from entering into any contract with a person who is not qualified for the purposes of Articles 64 to 66 of that Order and who, in response to an invitation by the authority offers to execute any work or supply any goods or services to it. Any contravention of or failure to comply with this duty is actionable by any person who, in consequence, suffers loss or damage.
Article 5 revokes the Fair Employment (Specification of Public Authorities) (No. 2) Order (Northern Ireland) 2000 and the Fair Employment (Specification of Public Authorities) (Amendment) Order (Northern Ireland) 2003.
S.I. 1998/3162 (N.I. 21)
S.R. 1999 No. 481; Article 4(a) and Schedule 2, Part I
S.R. 1999 No. 481; Article 4(a) and Schedule 2, Part I