Disqualifications Act 2000
Encyclopedia
The Disqualifications Act 2000 (c.42) is an Act
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
. It gained Royal Assent on 30 November 2000. The Act extends a privilege to Ireland whereby persons elected to sit in its houses of parliament are eligible, if elected/appointed, to sit in a house of the parliament of the United Kingdom also. This privilege is a privilege extended to all countries in the Commonwealth of Nations
(of which Ireland is not a member).
and the Northern Ireland Assembly Disqualification Act 1975, which had previously disqualified any person who was a member of a legislature outside the Commonwealth
from becoming a member of the Commons or the Assembly, to remove the disqualification from members of the Oireachtas
(the Parliament of Ireland).
(A specific provision of the Northern Ireland Act 1998
had permitted members of the Seanad Éireann
to sit in the Assembly; this section was now repealed as obsolete.)
It amended the Northern Ireland Act 1998
to state that any Assembly member who was also a minister in the Government of Ireland, or the chair of a committee of the Dáil Éireann
, Seanad Éireann or Oireachtas, was not permitted to hold ministerial office or sit on the Northern Ireland Policing Board
. In addition, they were not permitted to be the chair of any statutory committee of the Assembly, or members of the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission
.
Ireland withdrew from the British Commonwealth of Nations in 1949. With its departure from the Commonwealth, Ireland lost the privilege extended to members of Commonwealth parliaments. Even though the United Kingdom passed the Ireland Act 1949
, providing that Ireland would not be treated as a “foreign country” for the purposes of British law, the privilege Ireland had lost was not restored to it. As such, an anomaly between the way Ireland was treated and the way Commonwealth countries were treated arise. Nevertheless, the issue attracted no attention over the years.
concerning the constitutional position of Northern Ireland
in 1998. Among the matters agreed in that Agreement were that Ireland would remove its constitutional claim to the territory of Northern Ireland. With effect from 2 December 1999, this Irish claim was dropped. The Government of the United Kingdom moved quickly to remove the aforementioned anomaly and introduced legislation to extend the privilege of members of the sovereign Irish parliament to also, if elected/appointed, take up seats in the parliament of the United Kingdom.
Unionist Members first proposed an amendment to the bill concerning the name used for the Irish State. They argued that the term ‘the Republic of Ireland’ should be used, and not ‘Ireland’. However, the Government did not accept this stating (see also Names of the Irish state
):
Next, the substance of the bill was debated at length. Opposition peers argued that permitting a member of the parliament of Ireland to simultaneously serve as a member of the parliament of the United Kingdom left room for a dangerous conflict of interest to emerge. They argued that this law would benefit only Sinn Féin
and that that party might use the new law to permit it to send its Members of Parliament to sit in Dáil Éireann
and speak for their constituents in the United Kingdom in Dáil Éireann
and that “would be huge step towards a United Ireland
by stealth”.
These arguments were not accepted. However, the arguments that Irish government ministers and chairmen of committees of the Irish parliament should not be permitted to serve as ministers in the United Kingdom were accepted.
Act of Parliament
An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
. It gained Royal Assent on 30 November 2000. The Act extends a privilege to Ireland whereby persons elected to sit in its houses of parliament are eligible, if elected/appointed, to sit in a house of the parliament of the United Kingdom also. This privilege is a privilege extended to all countries in the Commonwealth of Nations
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
(of which Ireland is not a member).
Summary of effects of the law
The Act amended the House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975
The House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that prohibits certain categories of people from becoming members of the House of Commons...
and the Northern Ireland Assembly Disqualification Act 1975, which had previously disqualified any person who was a member of a legislature outside the Commonwealth
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
from becoming a member of the Commons or the Assembly, to remove the disqualification from members of the Oireachtas
Oireachtas
The Oireachtas , sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the "national parliament" or legislature of Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of:*The President of Ireland*The two Houses of the Oireachtas :**Dáil Éireann...
(the Parliament of Ireland).
(A specific provision of the Northern Ireland Act 1998
Northern Ireland Act 1998
The Northern Ireland Act 1998 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which established a devolved legislature for Northern Ireland, the Northern Ireland Assembly, after decades of direct rule from Westminster....
had permitted members of the Seanad Éireann
Seanad Éireann
Seanad Éireann is the upper house of the Oireachtas , which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann . It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its members Senators or Seanadóirí . Unlike Dáil Éireann, it is not directly elected but consists of a mixture of members chosen by...
to sit in the Assembly; this section was now repealed as obsolete.)
It amended the Northern Ireland Act 1998
Northern Ireland Act 1998
The Northern Ireland Act 1998 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which established a devolved legislature for Northern Ireland, the Northern Ireland Assembly, after decades of direct rule from Westminster....
to state that any Assembly member who was also a minister in the Government of Ireland, or the chair of a committee of the Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann is the lower house, but principal chamber, of the Oireachtas , which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann . It is directly elected at least once in every five years under the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote...
, Seanad Éireann or Oireachtas, was not permitted to hold ministerial office or sit on the Northern Ireland Policing Board
Northern Ireland Policing Board
The Northern Ireland Policing Board is the police authority for Northern Ireland, charged with supervising the activities of the Police Service of Northern Ireland...
. In addition, they were not permitted to be the chair of any statutory committee of the Assembly, or members of the Northern Ireland Assembly Commission
Northern Ireland Assembly Commission
The Northern Ireland Assembly Commission is the corporate body of the Northern Ireland Assembly. The commission is headed by the Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly, currently William Hay MLA....
.
Background to the Commonwealth privilege
All members of sovereign parliaments of Commonwealth countries have a legal entitlement, if they are elected/appointed to sit in a House of Parliament of the United Kingdom, to take up their seat in the United Kingdom parliament. This is a privilege extended to Commonwealth countries under British law. Notwithstanding that this privilege in favour of Commonwealth countries for many years, no member of a Commonwealth parliament has ever been a member of the United Kingdom parliament as well. Practical matters, such as the impracticality of representing constituencies that are very far apart has meant that this privilege has been of little practical relevance. For example, it would in all likelihood prove impractical for a member of the Canadian House of Commons to represent constituents in say Ottawa and in London.Ireland withdrew from the British Commonwealth of Nations in 1949. With its departure from the Commonwealth, Ireland lost the privilege extended to members of Commonwealth parliaments. Even though the United Kingdom passed the Ireland Act 1949
Ireland Act 1949
The Ireland Act 1949 is a British Act of Parliament that was intended to deal with the consequences of the Republic of Ireland Act 1948 as passed by the Irish parliament...
, providing that Ireland would not be treated as a “foreign country” for the purposes of British law, the privilege Ireland had lost was not restored to it. As such, an anomaly between the way Ireland was treated and the way Commonwealth countries were treated arise. Nevertheless, the issue attracted no attention over the years.
Background to why the Commonwealth privilege was extended to Ireland
Ireland and the United Kingdom concluded the Belfast AgreementBelfast Agreement
The Good Friday Agreement or Belfast Agreement , sometimes called the Stormont Agreement, was a major political development in the Northern Ireland peace process...
concerning the constitutional position of Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
in 1998. Among the matters agreed in that Agreement were that Ireland would remove its constitutional claim to the territory of Northern Ireland. With effect from 2 December 1999, this Irish claim was dropped. The Government of the United Kingdom moved quickly to remove the aforementioned anomaly and introduced legislation to extend the privilege of members of the sovereign Irish parliament to also, if elected/appointed, take up seats in the parliament of the United Kingdom.
Heated parliamentary debate
The changed proposed under the Disqualification Bill 2000 were the subject of heated debate in the British House of Lords. The Government minister stated that:The constitutional changes made by the Irish Government are historic and irreversible. They represent the giving up of what has always been regarded in Ireland as very important constitutional provisions....When the Irish constitutional changes took effect on 2nd December, we believed it only right to follow those changes by removing in this Bill one of the last distinctions made in domestic legislation between Ireland and those other countries with which we have an equally warm and special relationship through the Commonwealth.
Unionist Members first proposed an amendment to the bill concerning the name used for the Irish State. They argued that the term ‘the Republic of Ireland’ should be used, and not ‘Ireland’. However, the Government did not accept this stating (see also Names of the Irish state
Names of the Irish state
There have been various names of the Irish state, some of which have been controversial. The constitutional name of the contemporary state is Ireland, the same as the island of Ireland, of which it comprises the major portion...
):
[T]he term "Ireland" is used correctly, is unambiguous and is in accordance with established practice. Since the conclusion of the British-Irish agreement in 1998 it has been the practice of both the British Government and Irish Government to refer to "Ireland" rather than "the Republic of Ireland" when the reference is in an international context. To accept the amendments would make the drafting of the Bill inconsistent with the practice of the Government in other legislation. Therefore, we oppose the amendment moved....
Next, the substance of the bill was debated at length. Opposition peers argued that permitting a member of the parliament of Ireland to simultaneously serve as a member of the parliament of the United Kingdom left room for a dangerous conflict of interest to emerge. They argued that this law would benefit only Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
and that that party might use the new law to permit it to send its Members of Parliament to sit in Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann is the lower house, but principal chamber, of the Oireachtas , which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann . It is directly elected at least once in every five years under the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote...
and speak for their constituents in the United Kingdom in Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann is the lower house, but principal chamber, of the Oireachtas , which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann . It is directly elected at least once in every five years under the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote...
and that “would be huge step towards a United Ireland
United Ireland
A united Ireland is the term used to refer to the idea of a sovereign state which covers all of the thirty-two traditional counties of Ireland. The island of Ireland includes the territory of two independent sovereign states: the Republic of Ireland, which covers 26 counties of the island, and the...
by stealth”.
These arguments were not accepted. However, the arguments that Irish government ministers and chairmen of committees of the Irish parliament should not be permitted to serve as ministers in the United Kingdom were accepted.