§ Lord Lairdasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will take action under paragraph 2(4) of Schedule 7 to the Northern Ireland Act 1998 against Ms Patricia Kelly who has withdrawn from the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission. [HL3316]
§ Baroness AmosMs Patricia Kelly resigned from her post of Commissioner in the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission on 30 June 1994, citing the commission's handling of the Holy Cross case as the reason for her resignation.
§ Lord Lairdasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the closing date for applications to the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission is 9 July as indicated in the advertisement to the public, or 16 July, as indicated in the information pack and in the application form; and why the dates are different; and [HL3659]
In seeking applications for the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission, what is meant by bodies nominating individuals; what bodies are envisaged; and whether the nominees will be treated as representatives of such bodies; and [HL3660]
In seeking applications for the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission, how they propose to deal with (a) individual applications; and (b) nominations from bodies; and [HL3661]
Whether appointments to the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission will be made on the basis of merit alone; whether this approach will be qualified in accordance with Section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998; and how the statutory requirement of representativeness will affect selection on the basis of merit alone; and [HL3662]
Who will be the independent assessor on the appointment panel for the appointments to the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission; and how the independence of that assessor will be determined. [HL3663]
§ Baroness AmosIt would be better for me to answer the noble Lord's Questions in one extended Answer.
The difference in the dates between the closing dates on the advertisement and the information pack was down to an out-dated document accidentally being posted onto the NIO website indicating that the closing date was 9 July. We rectified this as soon as we 179WA discovered the error. All advertisements in the press and other correspondence stated the (original) correct closing date of 16 July. The closing date was later extended to 28 July. Following requests from a number of people, we judged that an extension would be in the best interests of the commission. We are confident that a broad cross-section of the community has applied and are encouraged by the number of applicants; 14 for chief commissioner and 162 for commissioner posts.
The term "bodies nominating individuals" was used to indicate political parties and other organisations who wished to nominate people to apply for appointments to the commission. Any individual or organisation was eligible to make nominations if they wanted. The information pack made clear that any nominees who applied would be tested in the same way as every other applicant with regard to the criteria. The fact that they had been nominated by an organisation would not be a discriminating or plus factor in their application.
Appointments to the commission are conducted in accordance with the Code of Practice of the Commissioner for Public Appointments. This code of practice sets out the regulatory framework for an appointments process. All public appointments are governed by the overriding principle of selection based on merit, individuals who through their abilities, experience and qualities match the need of the public body in question. This means that all applicants to the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission must go through the same application and interview process.
Under Section 68(3) of the Northern Ireland Act, the Secretary of State is obliged to ensure that the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission is broadly representative of the community in Northern Ireland.
The Government take the issue of representativeness seriously and will do their best to ensure that the commission has the confidence of all parts of the community.
The independent assessor throughout the process and on the interview panel will be John Keanie. Mr Keanie is on the OCPA accredited list of assessors.
§ Lord Lairdasked Her Majesty's Government:
What reasons have been given by members of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission for resigning; and whether they will place copies of all relevant correspondence in the Library of the House. [HL3867]
§ Baroness AmosThere have been a total of six resignations from the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission. The details of which are as follows:
180WA
Commissioner Reason for Resignation Date Resigned Angela Hegarty Personal Reasons 1 December 2000 Prof Christine Bell The Commission's lack of powers and resources 9 September 2002 Dr Inez McCormack The Commission's lack of powers and resources 9 September 2002
Commissioner Reason for Resignation Date Resigned Patrick Yu The Commission's Bill of Rights project 7 July 2003 Dr Christopher McGimpsey To stand as a candidate in Northern Ireland Assembly elections 3 November 2003 Paddy Kelly Handling of Holy Cross case 30 June 2004 I am unable to disclose resignation letters, as they remain private and confidential correspondence between the out-going commissioner and the Secretary of State.