Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister

Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister
Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister logo
Northern Ireland

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The Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister (OFMDFM) (Irish: Oifig an Chéad-Aire agus an leasChéad-Aire, Ulster Scots: Offis o tha Heid Männystèr an tha Heid Männystèr depute / Office o the First Meinister an First Meinister depute[1] / Office o the First Meenister an First Meenister depute[2] / Office o the First Minister an First Minister depute[3]) is a devolved Northern Ireland government department in the Northern Ireland Executive with overall responsibility for the running of the Executive. The Ministers with overall responsibility for the department are the First Minister and deputy First Minister.

The department was originally known as the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister, with the same capitalisation used in the department's logo. Following a change in policy in 2007 (see First Minister and deputy First Minister), the word "deputy" is now spelt with a lower-case d, but the older version of the name is retained in the logo.

Contents

Ministers

The incumbent First Minister and deputy First Minister are Peter Robinson (Democratic Unionist Party) and Martin McGuinness (Sinn Féin) respectively. They are assisted by two junior ministers: Jonathan Bell (Democratic Unionist Party) and Martina Anderson (Sinn Féin). [4]

Responsibilities

OFMDFM’s overall aim is to “deliver a peaceful, fair, equal and prosperous society". Its key stated objectives include: "driving investment and sustainable development"; "Tackling disadvantage and promoting equality of opportunity"; and the "effective operation of the institutions of government". [5]

The office has the following main responsibilities: [6]

OFMDFM's main counterparts in the United Kingdom Government are:

Its main counterparts in the Irish Government are:

History

Following a referendum on the Belfast Agreement on 23 May 1998 and the granting of Royal Assent to the Northern Ireland Act 1998 on 19 November 1998, a Northern Ireland Assembly and Northern Ireland Executive were established by the United Kingdom government under Prime Minister Tony Blair. The process was known as devolution and was set up to return devolved legislative powers to Northern Ireland. OFMDFM is one of 11 devolved Northern Ireland departments created in December 1999 by the Northern Ireland Act 1998 and The Departments (Northern Ireland) Order 1999.

The First Minister and Deputy First Minister first took office on 2 December 1999. Devolution was suspended for four periods, during which the department came under the responsibility of direct rule ministers from the Northern Ireland Office:

Since 8 May 2007, devolution has operated without interruption.

References

  1. ^ North-South Ministerial Council: 2010 Annual Report in Ulster Scots
  2. ^ North-South Ministerial Council: 2009 Annual Report in Ulster Scots
  3. ^ North-South Ministerial Council: 2008 Annual Report in Ulster Scots
  4. ^ http://www.northernireland.gov.uk/index/work-of-the-executive/ministers-and-their-departments.htm Northern Ireland Executive
  5. ^ Northern Ireland Budget 2011-15, page 105
  6. ^ OFMDFM Ministers
  7. ^ Northern Ireland Office: About the NIO
  8. ^ Cabinet Office: About the Cabinet Office
  9. ^ Cabinet Office: Honours and awards
  10. ^ Department for Communities and Local Government: Communities and neighbourhoods
  11. ^ Department for Communities and Local Government: Fire and resilience
  12. ^ Government Equalities Office: About GEO
  13. ^ Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: About Defra
  14. ^ Foreign and Commonwealth Office: About us
  15. ^ Department of the Taoiseach: Role of the Taoiseach
  16. ^ Department of Foreign Affairs: About the Department of Foreign Affairs
  17. ^ Department of Justice and Equality: About Us
  18. ^ Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government: Sustainable Development
  19. ^ Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government: Emergency Planning
  20. ^ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Commencement) Order 2000
  21. ^ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Restoration of Devolved Government) Order 2000
  22. ^ Article 1, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Suspension of Devolved Government) Order 2001
  23. ^ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Restoration of Devolved Government) Order 2001
  24. ^ Article 1, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Suspension of Devolved Government) (No.2) Order 2001
  25. ^ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Restoration of Devolved Government) (No.2) Order 2001
  26. ^ Article 1, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Suspension of Devolved Government) Order 2002
  27. ^ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Restoration of Devolved Government) Order 2007

See also

External links


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