Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (): The UK Government's
legislative programme for the second session was set out at the
State Opening of Parliament on 13 May 2026. This statement
summarises the programme and how it applies to Northern Ireland.
It does not include Law Commission Bills, or Finance Bills.
The Government will continue to work for a stable, prosperous,
and vibrant Northern Ireland through the upcoming legislative
programme. This Government firmly believes that devolution
represents the best means of delivering for the people of
Northern Ireland. We will continue to work collaboratively with
the Northern Ireland Executive to support institutional stability
and we will continue to work closely with Ministers and party
leaders ahead of local and Assembly elections in May 2027.
We will deliver the Northern Ireland Troubles Bill, which will
repeal and replace the previous Government's Legacy Act.
The Bill will enable victims and bereaved families affected by
the Troubles - including armed forces families - to seek
information and accountability through a reformed Legacy
Commission.
The Bill will provide for a fair and more transparent disclosure
regime; a new Independent Commission on Information Retrieval;
and lawful protections for veterans so that those who carried out
their duty properly in Northern Ireland will not face an endless
cycle of legal uncertainty and are treated with dignity and
respect.
This Government will look to share best practice while continuing
to strengthen our relationship with the Northern Ireland
Executive to provide stability and improve the lives of the
people of Northern Ireland.
We will continue to support and invest in Northern Ireland's
economic future, generating economic growth through the
Government's ‘Invest 2035' Industrial Strategy and ensure that
all our UK-wide strategies have benefits for the people of
Northern Ireland. In support of this, we are working with the
Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) to
ensure Northern Ireland is fully considered in the development of
UK-wide AI Growth Zone policy.
Following its launch on 22 April 2026, the Northern Ireland
Defence Growth Deal will provide a £50 million boost, part of a
£250 million UK-wide investment, to create high-skilled jobs and
support small and medium sized businesses to access the UK
defence supply chain. This Government is committed to protecting
Northern Ireland's place in the UK internal market, while
faithfully implementing the Windsor Framework. We will continue
to support the work of Intertrade UK as it takes forward an
ambitious programme of work to identify barriers to trade in the
UK internal market and how these can be addressed.
The Government has provided £235m funding for public sector
transformation. In March 2025, £129m of this funding was
allocated to six projects across health, education, justice and
infrastructure. These projects will continue to embed change and
act as a catalyst for further improvements as departments begin
to deliver results in the years ahead. Details on the allocation
of the remaining £102m available are set to be announced by the
Executive soon.
This Government will continue to facilitate and encourage
integration in education across Northern Ireland, in line with
the UK's commitments under the Good Friday Agreement, through a
£2 million injection of Grant Programme funding over the next
three years.
The Government's first responsibility is to keep people safe. I
pay tribute to those who work so hard to do this in Northern
Ireland. In recognition of the security situation, the Government
has increased the amount provided to the Police Service of
Northern Ireland (PSNI) in Additional Security Funding. This
helps the PSNI to tackle terrorist threats, alongside day-to-day
policing, so allowing them to continue keeping people safe.
The recent attacks on police stations in Northern Ireland are a
reminder that a small minority of people remain determined to
cause harm to our communities through acts of violence and it is
testament to the tremendous efforts of the PSNI and security
partners that the lives of the vast majority of people in
Northern Ireland remain unaffected by this threat.
The following Bills will extend and apply to Northern Ireland,
either in full or in part:
Armed Forces
Civil Aviation
Clean Water
Competition Reform
Courts and Tribunals
Cyber Security and Resilience (Network and Information System)
Digital Access to Services
Electricity Generator Levy
Energy Independence
Enhancing Financial Services
European Partnership
Immigration and Asylum
National Security
Health
Northern Ireland Troubles
Public Office (Accountability)
Railways
Regulating for Growth
Removal of Peerages
Representation of the People
Small Business Protections (Late Payments)
Sovereign Grant
Sporting Events
Steel Industry (Nationalisation)
Tackling State Threats
Ticket Tout Ban (Draft)
The UK Government will endeavour to work collaboratively with the
Northern Ireland Executive to secure the legislative consent of
the Assembly where appropriate.
