Department for Regional Development

Department for Regional Development
Department overview
Formed December 1999
Preceding Department
  • Department of the Environment
Jurisdiction Northern Ireland
Headquarters Clarence Court, 10–18 Adelaide Street, Belfast, BT2 8GB
Employees 2,406 (September 2011)[1]
Annual budget £508.3 million (current) & £452.8 million (capital) for 2011–12[2]
Minister responsible
Website www.drdni.gov.uk
Northern Ireland
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The Department for Regional Development (DRD, Irish: An Roinn Forbartha Réigiúnaí;[3] Ulster-Scots: Männystrie fur Kintra Pairts Fordèrin)[4][5] is a devolved Northern Ireland government department in the Northern Ireland Executive. The minister with overall responsibility for the department is the Minister for Regional Development.

Aim

DRD's overall aim is to "improve quality of life by securing transport and water infrastructure and shaping the region's long-term strategic development".[6]

There is current minister of DRD is Michelle McIlveen (DUP).

Responsibilities

The department's main responsibilities include [7]

Two transport matters are reserved to Westminster and are therefore not devolved: [8]

DRD's main counterparts in the United Kingdom Government are:

In the Irish Government, its main counterparts are:

Agencies

History

The Ministry of Home Affairs was established on the formation of Northern Ireland in June 1921 and was responsible for a range of non-economic domestic matters, including local government. A separate Ministry of Health and Local Government was formed in 1944 and was subsequently split in 1965, to create the Ministry of Development. An environment ministry existed in the 1974 Northern Ireland Executive and the ministry was known as the Department of the Environment under direct rule.

The DoE is still a phrase used in everyday language in Northern Ireland to describe the Roads Service, which was once run by the department but is currently an agency of the Department for Regional Development.

Following a referendum on the Belfast Agreement on 23 May 1998 and the granting of royal assent to the Northern Ireland Act 1998 on 19 November 1998, a Northern Ireland Assembly and Northern Ireland Executive were established by the United Kingdom Government under Prime Minister Tony Blair. The process was known as devolution and was set up to return devolved legislative powers to Northern Ireland. DRD is one of five new devolved Northern Ireland departments created in December 1999 by the Northern Ireland Act 1998 and The Departments (Northern Ireland) Order 1999.

A devolved minister first took office on 2 December 1999. Devolution was suspended for four periods, during which the department came under the responsibility of direct rule ministers from the Northern Ireland Office:

Since 8 May 2007, devolution has operated without interruption.

Ministers for Regional Development

MinisterImagePartyTook officeLeft office
    Peter Robinson DUP 2 December 1999 11 February 2000
Office suspended
    Peter Robinson DUP 30 May 2000 27 July 2001
    Gregory Campbell DUP 27 July 200124 October 2001[22]
    Peter Robinson DUP 24 October 200114 October 2002
Office suspended
    Conor Murphy Sinn Féin 8 May 2007 16 May 2011
    Danny Kennedy UUP 16 May 2011 1 September 2015
    Michelle McIlveen DUP 21 September 2015 Incumbent[note 1]

Direct rule ministers

During the periods of suspension, the following ministers of the Northern Ireland Office were responsible for the department:

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Northern Ireland Quarterly Employment Survey Historical Data". Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment. Retrieved 28 December 2011.
  2. ↑ "Budget 2011–15" (PDF). Department of Finance and Personnel. Retrieved 28 December 2011.
  3. ↑ "Gaeilge" (in Irish). Department for Regional Development. Retrieved 3 March 2009.
  4. ↑ "Ulstèr-Scotch" (in Scots). Department for Regional Development. Retrieved 3 March 2009.
  5. ↑ Depairtment for Regional Oncum is also used by the North-South Ministerial Council.
  6. ↑ Northern Ireland Budget 2011–15, page 91
  7. ↑ DRD Main Responsibilities
  8. ↑ Northern Ireland Act 1998, Schedule 3
  9. ↑ Department for Transport: About us
  10. ↑ Defra: Water
  11. ↑ Communities and Local Government: Planning, building and the environment
  12. ↑ Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport: About Us
  13. ↑ Department of Environment, Community and Local Government: Mission Statement
  14. ↑ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Commencement) Order 2000
  15. ↑ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Restoration of Devolved Government) Order 2000
  16. ↑ Article 1, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Suspension of Devolved Government) Order 2001
  17. ↑ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Restoration of Devolved Government) Order 2001
  18. ↑ Article 1, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Suspension of Devolved Government) (No.2) Order 2001
  19. ↑ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Restoration of Devolved Government) (No.2) Order 2001
  20. ↑ Article 1, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Suspension of Devolved Government) Order 2002
  21. ↑ Article 2, Northern Ireland Act 2000 (Restoration of Devolved Government) Order 2007
  22. ↑ Office suspended for 24 hours on 11 August 2001 and 22 September 2001

Notes

  1. ↑ Resigned on 21 September 2015, re-entered office on 23 Sept. till 24 Sept., then 30 Sept.-1 Oct. 2015. Following the 20 October she permanently occupies the office

External links

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