§ Mr. Mallonasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will invite the Fair Employment Agency for Northern Ireland to initiate an urgent and comprehensive investigation of promotion structures and practices within Government training centres; and if he will make a statement.
§ Dr. BoysonNo. The Fair Employment Agency is obliged to investigate bona fide individual complaints of unlawful discrimination within the terms of the Fair Employment (Northern Ireland) Act 1976; any individual who believes that he has suffered in this way can seek redress by making a complaint to the agency.
The agency is also empowered, under section 12 of the 1976 Act, to investigate the employment policies and practices of an employer. It is for the agency, which is an independent statutory body, to decide when these powers should be used.