The
Northern Ireland Act 1998 (c.47) 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.
It repealed the Government of Ireland Act 1920, parts of the Northern Ireland Constitution Act 1973, and established new rules in line with the European Union and the Northern Ireland peace process, subsequent to the Good Friday Agreement of 1998.
The Act allows for a devolved Northern Ireland Assembly of 108 members. Membership of the assembly is subject to a pledge of office, which subjects the member to certain requirements with regard to standards and responsibilities. Northern Ireland remains a part of the United Kingdom until or unless a majority vote in a referendum determines otherwise. The Assembly has been suspended a number of times since 1998, and was re-established on Tuesday 8 May 2007, subsequent to the St Andrews Agreement of 2006.
Election to the Assembly is by Single Transferrable Vote (STV) a form of Proportional Representation.
