The advocate general for Northern Ireland is the chief legal adviser to the Government of the United Kingdom on Northern Ireland law and the post is held by the attorney general for England and Wales by virtue of that office. The advocate general and the solicitor general for England and Wales have, in Northern Ireland, the same rights of audience as members of the Bar of Northern Ireland.[1] They are called to the Northern Ireland Bar in order to fulfill these duties.[2]
| United Kingdom Advocate General for Northern Ireland | |
|---|---|
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| Attorney General's Office | |
| Style | The Right Honourable |
| Reports to | The Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Justice |
| Appointer | The King (on the advice of the Prime Minister) |
| Term length | At His Majesty's pleasure |
| Formation | April 2010 |
| First holder | Patricia Scotland |
| Deputy | Attorney General |
| Website | www.gov.uk |
The advocate general was created as a separate office by the Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2002[1] upon the devolution of policing and justice powers to the Northern Ireland Assembly on 12 April 2010.[3]
Unlike the advocate general for Scotland, the position is not supported by a distinct government department. Instead, that support is provided by the civil law and Northern Ireland section within the Attorney General's Office at Westminster.[4][5]
The chief legal adviser to the Northern Ireland Executive is the attorney general for Northern Ireland.[6]
The advocate general retains the power to refer the question of whether a bill passed by the Northern Ireland Assembly to the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom is within the competence of the Assembly.[7]
List of Advocates General
editColour key (for political parties):
Conservative
Labour
| Advocate General | Term of office | Political party | Prime Minister | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patricia Scotland Baroness Scotland of Asthal |
12 April 2010 | 11 May 2010 | Labour | Brown | |||
| Dominic Grieve MP for Beaconsfield |
12 May 2010 | 15 July 2014 | Conservative | Cameron (coalition) | |||
| Jeremy Wright MP for Kenilworth and Southam |
15 July 2014 | 9 July 2018 | Cameron | ||||
| May | |||||||
| Geoffrey Cox MP for Torridge and West Devon |
9 July 2018 | 13 February 2020 | |||||
| Johnson | |||||||
| Suella Braverman MP for Fareham |
13 February 2020 | 2 March 2021 | |||||
| Michael Ellis MP for Northampton North (acting) |
2 March 2021 | 10 September 2021 | |||||
| Suella Braverman MP for Fareham |
10 September 2021 | 6 September 2022 | |||||
| Michael Ellis MP for Northampton North |
6 September 2022 | 25 October 2022 | Truss | ||||
| Victoria Prentis MP for Banbury |
25 October 2022 | 5 July 2024 | Sunak | ||||
| The Lord Hermer | 5 July 2024 | Incumbent | Labour | Starmer | |||
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2002", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 2002 c. 26
- ^ "Law Officers called to Northern Ireland Bar". Wired Gov. WIRED GOV LTD. 10 September 2024. Archived from the original on 20 September 2024. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
- ^ Attorney General's Office: Statement on Northern Ireland devolution, 12 April 2010 Archived July 5, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "2020-08-12T10-32-10Z-2020-03-31-organogram-senior.csv". data.gov.uk. 31 March 2020. Archived from the original on 31 December 2022. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
- ^ "2020-08-12T10-32-10Z-2020-03-31-organogram-junior.csv". data.gov.uk. 31 March 2020. Archived from the original on 20 September 2024. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
- ^ "First Minister Peter Robinson MLA and deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness MP, MLA have announced the appointment of Mr John F Larkin QC as Attorney General for Northern Ireland". Northern Ireland Executive Office. 24 May 2010. Archived from the original on 24 April 2011. Retrieved 20 September 2024.
- ^ "Northern Ireland Act 1998", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 19 November 1998, 1998 c. 47, retrieved 20 September 2024
External links
edit(incorporating Advocate General for Northern Ireland)