Orders of the Day — Northern Ireland Constitution (Amendment) Bill

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons am 12:00 am ar 13 Rhagfyr 1973.

Danfonwch hysbysiad imi am ddadleuon fel hyn

Photo of Mr Stanley McMaster Mr Stanley McMaster , Belfast East 12:00, 13 Rhagfyr 1973

It gives me particular pleasure to follow my hon. Friend the Member for Chigwell (Mr. Biggs-Davison). I am sure that the House will understand if he chooses to withdraw from the Chamber rather than listen to my humble contribution.

I say at once that I welcomed and admired the courage, understanding and sympathy behind my hon. Friend's speech and the great interest he has taken in Northern Ireland and its affairs. I congratulate him on the recent publication of his book on Northern Ireland. I am sure that all who are in the Chamber now and all others who take an interest in our affairs will read that book. I congratulate my hon. Friend upon his speech.

I welcome the constitutional changes which will come about as a result of this measure. Along with my hon. Friend, I regret that the communiqué following the Sunningdale conference did not state both sides of the proposition. I was sorry to see it contemplating a change but not going further to balance things for the sake of the Unionist majority in Northern Ireland and stating clearly that if that majority did not want change Northern Ireland would remain part of the United Kingdom and would be defended as such. This was not clearly stated in the communiqué and represents a shortcoming in that document.

I congratulate my right hon. Friend the present Secretary of State for Employment on the considerable efforts which he has put in over the past year and a half in reaching this settlement. I wish him well in his new appointment. I feel that my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland was rather pushed in at the deep end at Sunningdale. He was given the job at a moment's notice and had to face perhaps one of the most difficult and monumental conferences which has taken place in recent years. I congratulate him and his colleagues who were at Sunningdale on achieving the settlement embodied in the communiqué.

I feel it presages a new period in the history of the United Kingdom and in the history of good relations between the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. I share none of the fears of my hon. and gallant Friend the Member for Down, South (Captain Orr). I am confident that all sides in the community will make their opinions felt in the months to come and that it will be quite clear that those who oppose this constitutional settlement represent a small majority on both sides of the political divide and of the total population in Northern Ireland. People of all religions are now gathered together in the new Assembly with a new power-sharing Executive which can herald a new period of political co-operation in Northern Ireland.

I have a number of questions to ask my right hon. Friend arising out of the Bill and the orders. It might be convenient if the orders were dealt with separately, because one is very long and to go into the points on them now at length would waste time.

Is the number of Members of the new Executive, as set out in Clause 1, a wise step? Would it not be better, on grounds of flexibility, to lay down no specific number for the total of those who shall take part in the new Executive? It may in future be necessary to appoint Parliamentary Secretaries as more powers are transferred to Northern Ireland. A promise has already been given regarding the control of the police. Does the Bill provide sufficient flexibility for the appointment of such persons as Parliamentary Secretaries and for changing the functions as set out in the Constitution Act read in conjunction with the amending Bill?

What will Westminster's functions be in relation to the new Ministers? Under the previous Act the Secertary of State has power to create Ministers and to rearrange the functions of Departments. Will the new head of the Executive have the powers or does my right hoc. Friend intend to continue performing those powers? I hope this will be clarified in the winding-up speech.

I do not think that my right hon. Friend quite understood a point which I made in an earlier intervention regarding the Ministries. In the Bill, and in the Ministries order, the heads of Departments are referred to as Ministers.