February 16, 2011
By Staff Reporter
What follows is a chronology covering the recent past and near future events as they relate to the implementation of the Good Friday peace agreement :
Saturday, Nov. 27
€ Ulster Unionist Council voted to nominate ministers.
Monday, Nov. 29
€ Assembly meets. Parties nominate Ministers under d’Hondt procedure (3 UUP, 3 SDLP, 2 DUP, 2 S.F.).
€ First minister/deputy first minister reconfirmed in office (necessary because of Mallon resignation in July).
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Tuesday, Nov. 30
Devolution Order laid before Houses of Parliament.
Wednesday, Dec. 1
€ Devolution Order to be signed by Queen in Privy Council.
€ Meetings of (a) shadow Executive, (b) shadow North-South Ministerial Council and, possibly, (c) shadow British-Irish Council, Belfast.
Thursday, Dec. 2
€ Devolution Order takes effect, and powers transferred to Assembly and Executive.
€ First meeting of Executive, Belfast.
€ Exchange between British and Irish governments of notifications bringing British-Irish agreement, 1998, into force. Supplementary British-Irish agreements establishing (a) North-South Ministerial Council (b) North-South Implementation Bodies (c) British-Irish Council and (d) British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference also then enter into force.
€ Taoiseach signs commencement order bringing British-Irish Agreement Act, 1999, into effect (this makes domestic legal arrangements necessary for implementation bodies to function in our jurisdiction).
€ Government makes declaration giving effect to amendments to Articles 2 and 3 of Constitution.
€ New British constitutional provisions, including repeal of Government of Ireland Act, 1920, also take effect.
€ Appointment by IRA (and UDA?) of authorized representatives to hold discussions with Independent International Commission on Decommissioning (IICD).
Within days
€ IICD to issue report on discussions with authorized representatives.
December (dates to be finally agreed)
€ Inaugural plenary meeting of North-South Ministerial Council, Armagh.
€ Inaugural plenary meetings of British-Irish Council and British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference, London.