Scope of the review

Section 56 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 required the First Minister and deputy First Minister, with the approval of the Assembly, to make arrangements for obtaining the views of the Civic Forum referred to in the Belfast Agreement.  

The Forum met in plenary format 12 times between 9 October 2000 and 14 October 2002 but was unable to operate during suspension of the devolved institutions.  Given the changes in the social and economic environment in Northern Ireland since the Forum was first established, the First Minister and deputy First Minister believe that there is a need to fundamentally review the structure and role of the Civic Forum.

The goal of the review is to propose the most appropriate mechanism and arrangements for engaging with and obtaining the views of civic society on social, economic and cultural matters.

The review will take account of existing methods of engagement with civic society here as well as looking at structures in place elsewhere. The review will recommend how the various channels of engagement might be realigned to best serve both government and the general public. Consistent with the Terms of Reference, the review team will address how any future Forum would operate in practice, including governance, legal and financial matters and secretariat arrangements.

The review offers the people of Northern Ireland a unique opportunity to help shape how government engages with civic society. The review process will facilitate an open and transparent debate on models of civic partnership. The review team will listen to all views about the options for reform. The public will be able to follow the debate on this website. The team will seek to canvass as wide a spectrum of opinion as possible and will welcome contributions from interested members of the public and relevant organisations.

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