§ Mr. McNamaraTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if she will publish the perceived religious affiliation by(a) number, (b) percentage and (c) gender for each public body to which her Department makes appointments. [25264]
§ Mr. Paul MurphyMonitoring information on the religious background of appointees to public bodies in Northern Ireland has been collected only for those appointed from 1 July 1996.
The Secretary of State's first Annual Report on Public Appointments in Northern Ireland, due to be published soon, will provide a statistical analysis on the community background by gender of those appointed to public bodies during 1996–97, in line with the Commissioner for Public Appointment's Guidance. The Report, when published, will be available in the Library.