NI Governance 1921-72
From 1921 to 1972, the legislature of Northern Ireland consisted of the House of Commons and the Senate. The Lord Lieutenant was replaced by a Governor in 1922, with powers to enact legislation, though this was rarely exercised.
The Governor’s term was six years but was eligible for reappointment. If the Senate rejected a bill, a joint sitting could be convened by the Governor, and the legislation could only be passed by a majority in the joint sitting.
Initially, the House of Commons had 52 seats, elected by proportional representation in multi-member constituencies. This system was replaced in local council elections in 1922 and in House of Commons elections in 1929 by single-seat constituencies.
The University seats were abolished in 1968, and four additional seats were introduced. This legislation also removed a business vote system, which allowed an elector to claim an additional vote if they owned business premises valued at 10 pounds in another constituency.
The voting age was lowered from 21 to 18 in 1969. While citizens of the Republic of Ireland could vote only in Westminster elections, British subjects were entitled to register for Northern Ireland Parliament elections. They had to be born in Northern Ireland or continuously reside in the United Kingdom for seven years preceding the qualification date.
The House of Commons was elected for five years or until dissolved. UK peers could sit in both the UK and Northern Ireland House of Commons, and in some cases, former Prime Ministers were entitled to sit in the House of Lords.
The Northern Ireland Senate comprised 26 seats, with the Lord Mayors of Belfast and Derry as members by regional office and 24 elected by MPs under a proportional representation system. Senators served eight years, with half retiring every four years and could survive Parliament dissolution.
The Government of Ireland Act 1920 granted the Northern Ireland Parliament powers over peace, order, and good government subject to excluded matters, exclusively related to its territory. Excluded matters included issues like treaties of foreign states, treatment of aliens, external trade, and others.
Reserved matters were intended for transfer to the Northern Ireland Parliament. They included postal service, certain aspects of land purchase, and various taxes such as customs and excise, corporation profit tax, and income tax.
In 1928, another UK-Northern Ireland legislation transferred some reserved matters. The power to hear appeals from inferior courts was provided in 1928. Land purchase was fully transferred to the Northern Ireland Parliament in 1935.
Laws existing on May 3, 1921, continued in force, but could be amended or repealed by the Northern Ireland Parliament. However, the supreme authority of the UK Parliament remained unaffected concerning persons, matters, and things in Northern Ireland.
Procedures existed to challenge the validity of Northern Ireland legislation under the Government of Ireland Act. Bills or acts could be referred to the judicial committee of the Privy Council, similar to the House of Lords and the current UK Supreme Court. Legislation could also be challenged in ordinary litigation.
Most bills were introduced in the House of Commons. The Governor outlined the legislative program in the Queen’s speech at the start of each session, and many of these could not be amended by the Senate.
The Governor was appointed by the Crown on advice from the British government and appointed administrators for various departments formally.
Initially, the departments included finance, home affairs, labor, education, agriculture, and commerce. During the Second World War, a Department of Security was added. The Department of Health and Local Government was established in 1944, and in 1964, the existing departments were reorganized into the Ministries of Health and Social Insurance, Development, and Community Relations.
Ministers, required to be either members of the Commons or Senate, headed the departments. They generally came from the Commons and automatically became members of the Privy Council of Northern Ireland, forming the executive committee.
The civil servants from the existing Irish departments transitioned to the new Northern Ireland Government Department.
Prior to the Government of Ireland Act, the Northern Ireland six counties had [ ] members in the Westminster Parliament, reduced to 13 to accommodate the Northern Ireland Government.
Local government structures reflected the Local Government Ireland Act 1898. The councils exercised various functions, including education, health, welfare, sanitation, housing, planning, and development, with county councils and borough councils being key.Local government elections occurred every three years, with specific qualifications for voting rights.
Revenue for councils came from rates, government grants, and charges for services. Over time, the central government’s contribution increased significantly.The New Towns Act, Northern Ireland, 1965 aimed to create new terms for development and expand existing ones.
The 1969 local government white paper proposed a radical reduction in the number of county councils, ultimately leading to significant reforms in 1972 due to criticism and civil unrest in the late 1960s.
The regulation of courts was reserved for Westminster, while other courts were under the Northern Ireland Parliament, including the County Court, Magistrates Court, and Coroner’s Court.
The High Court had two divisions, the Queen’s Bench Division and Chancery Division, with a Court of Appeal and a Court of Criminal Appeal.
County courts dealt with matters within certain value bands, while magistrate courts handled summary matters. Initially, they were held in conjunction with petty sessions, and later, salaried magistrates presided over these sessions.
The Inns of Court of Northern Ireland, formed in 1926, regulated power admission, and the Incorporated Law Society of Ireland was established in 1922.