HL Deb 09 January 2003 vol 642 cc234-5WA
Lord Laird

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether, when the Northern Ireland Assembly was suspended on 14 October, the six implementation bodies created by an agreement on 8 March 1999, were also effectively suspended given paragraph 5 of the Declaration of Support of the Belfast Agreement and the second recital to the relevant 8 March 1999 agreement. [HL464]

Lord Williams of Mostyn

No. The bodies continue to discharge important statutory functions. The two governments concluded an exchange of notes on 19 November 2002 relating to the implementation bodies and Tourism Ireland Limited during suspension. A copy of that exchange has been placed in the Library, as has the statement of clarification issued by the two governments following their meeting in Dublin on 18 December 2002.