HC Deb 02 May 1991 vol 190 cc415-6
1. Mr. John Marshall

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what discussions he has had with local authorities about Sunday observance.

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (Mr. Jeremy Hanley)

None, sir.

Mr. Marshall

Is my hon. Friend aware that, despite the intervention of the hon. Member for Antrim, North (Rev. Ian Paisley), in a recent referendum in Castlereagh, the people voted 4:1 in favour of the Sunday opening of municipal facilities? Does my hon. Friend agree that a law that is frequently broken and rarely enforced brings the rule of law itself into disrepute and that the Shops Act 1950 should be amended to take account of the needs and opinions of the 1990s?

Mr. Hanley

The Government have no proposals to change the Northern Ireland shops laws at the moment, but intend to keep the position under review in the light of developments in Great Britain.

Mr. John D. Taylor

Does the Minister accept that the Sabbath is still a special day in Northern Ireland, which is welcomed by the vast majority of the people who live there? Will he assure the House that Sunday opening will not be imposed on Northern Ireland or on its local authorities and that this will remain an option for the local community?

Mr. Hanley

Should any change be contemplated for Northern Ireland, consultations with the interested parties, including the district councils and, of course, Members of Parliament, will take place at the appropriate time. In the meantime, the law is the law.

Rev. Ian Paisley

I welcome the fact that the Minister has said that the law is the law, but how many breaches of Sunday observance have there been among shops in Northern Ireland? Should not this side of the United Kingdom put its house in order before it begins to interfere more in Northern Ireland, without consulting its people? Should not the ordinary people have a say in what is done on Sunday, which is a special day to them?

Mr. Hanley

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his question, but I am afraid that we do not have any information about the number of breaches of that law. It is almost impossible to tell. However, I assure the hon. Gentleman that any change will be accompanied by wide consultation with all the parties concerned.