Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission (Hansard, 16 July 2002)

§ Lord Laird
asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission has requested extra resources from them; on what occasions; and, in each case, what was their response. [HL4690]

§ Lord Williams of Mostyn
Her Majesty's Government have received requests from the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission for extra funding on a number of different occasions.
147WA
These occasions and the Government's response are listed in the table.

Date Request Response

August 1999 The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission requested £200,000. The commission was advised that there were already sufficient funds within its budget to cover its request.

October 1999 The commission requested the same £200,000 funding. It was advised that £178,000 had been ringfenced within its budget.

January 2001 The commission bid for an additional £207,000 for the financial year 2000–01. The Government sought further information to be included in a revised bid.

January 2001 The commission bid for a £398,250 increase for the financial year 2001–02. The Government sought further information to be included in a revised bid.

August 2001 The commission bid for extra funds for its Bill of Rights consultation amounting to £456,200. The Government agreed funding of £357,200.

October 2001 The commission requested £25,000 to undertake an independent evaluation of its effectiveness and a review of the organisational structure. The Government agreed to this request for funding subject to certain conditions.

November 2001 A bid for £227,603 for the financial year 2001–02 was received from the commission. This subsumed the bid submitted in January 2001. However, the commission had since increased the amount of its bid The Government agreed to funding of an additional £183,592.

April 2002 The commission submitted a bid for further funding of £575,750 for the financial year 2002–03. This bid subsumed the bid received in January 2001 for the financial year 2001–02. The Government agreed additional funding of £443,250 in addition to the baseline funding of £750,000.

§ Lord Laird
asked Her Majesty's Government:

(a) on which Bills the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission has made written submissions since 1 March 1999;

(b) how many amendments the commission proposed to each Bill; and

(c) how many proposed amendments to each Bill were accepted by the Government. [HL4914]

§ Lord Williams of Mostyn
A full response to this Question could be supplied only at disproportionate cost. However, listed below are the Bills on which the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commisison has made written submissions:

Police (Northern Ireland) Bill

Terrorism Bill

Justice (Northern Ireland) Bill

Protection of Children and Vulnerable Adults Bill

Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Bill

Freedom of Information Bill

Immigration and Asylum Bill

Criminal Justice and Police Bill

Disability Rights Bill

§ Lord Laird
asked Her Majesty's Government:
What is their response to the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission's criticisms not being accepted in the main by the United Nations' Human Rights Committee when it considered the report on the United Kingdom at its meeting in Geneva in the autumn of 2001. [HL5011]

§ Lord Williams of Mostyn
In preparing for the UN Human Rights Committee's examination of the UK's Fifth Periodic Report the UK took into account the148WA comments submitted by the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission. We are giving careful consideration to the concluding observations of the UN Human Rights Committee following the hearing and will take these into account during the preparation of our next periodic report. The UK takes its international obligations seriously and has an excellent record of co-operation with UN mechanisms. The UK welcomes scrutiny as part of its efforts to promote and protect human rights.

§ Lord Laird
asked Her Majesty's Government:
What changes, if any, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has requested to the job description of the chief executive of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission. [HL5044]

§ Lord Williams of Mostyn
The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission has responsibility for the appointment of the chief executive and also for the agreement of his or her terms and conditions. The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has not requested the commission to make any changes to the job description of the chief executive.

§ Lord Laird
asked Her Majesty's Government:
What is their response to the concerns noted in the minutes of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission on 10 December 2001 (paragraph 5.3.1) and 11 February 2002 (paragraph 4.1) about the level of detail included in correspondence by the Northern Ireland Office about the commission's finances. [HL5052]

§ Lord Williams of Mostyn
The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission is an independent public body. However, when making a bid for funding it is subject to the same constraints as all other public 149WA bodies. The Government are responsible and accountable for the correct use of public funds, and therefore require that all bids for funding are accompanied by a clear business case. If, when assessing bids, more detailed explanation is required, we will seek further information from the commission.

§ Lord Laird
asked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they have received the report of Peter Hosking on the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission; and whether they consider that the expenditure of £25,000 was justified. [HL5055]

§ Lord Williams of Mostyn
I can confirm to the noble Lord that the Government have received Peter Hosking's report on the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission.
As the work was initiated by the commission and conducted within its own budget, is is not for the Government to consider whether or not the expenditure was justified.

Date	Request	Response
August 1999	The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission requested £200,000.	The commission was advised that there were already sufficient funds within its budget to cover its request.
October 1999	The commission requested the same £200,000 funding.	It was advised that £178,000 had been ringfenced within its budget.
January 2001	The commission bid for an additional £207,000 for the financial year 2000–01.	The Government sought further information to be included in a revised bid.
January 2001	The commission bid for a £398,250 increase for the financial year 2001–02.	The Government sought further information to be included in a revised bid.
August 2001	The commission bid for extra funds for its Bill of Rights consultation amounting to £456,200.	The Government agreed funding of £357,200.
October 2001	The commission requested £25,000 to undertake an independent evaluation of its effectiveness and a review of the organisational structure.	The Government agreed to this request for funding subject to certain conditions.
November 2001	A bid for £227,603 for the financial year 2001–02 was received from the commission. This subsumed the bid submitted in January 2001. However, the commission had since increased the amount of its bid	The Government agreed to funding of an additional £183,592.
April 2002	The commission submitted a bid for further funding of £575,750 for the financial year 2002–03. This bid subsumed the bid received in January 2001 for the financial year 2001–02.	The Government agreed additional funding of £443,250 in addition to the baseline funding of £750,000.