Debate contribution: The draft Legal Complaints and Regulation (Penalty) Order (Northern Ireland) 2025

Debate contribution by Ms Diane Forsythe on 24 June 2025.

MLA

Ms Diane Forsythe

Party at the time

Democratic Unionist Party

Date

24 June 2025

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Executive Committee Business

Heading

The draft Legal Complaints and Regulation (Penalty) Order (Northern Ireland) 2025

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5047262

Read the official Assembly record

Text

During the process of reviewing the statutory rules, which will enact the role of the Legal Services Oversight Commissioner, the Finance Committee received a briefing on 21 May 2025, at which I raised a number of questions, and another briefing on Wednesday 18 June, at which I raised more questions. I do not feel as though my questions were adequately answered to the point of alleviating our concerns. I take the opportunity to raise those concerns today and to ask the Minister for some clarification and reassurance, where possible, as without the answers to those questions, we cannot support the statutory rules. First, given the fact that we are some nine years down the line from implementing the regulations, I am concerned that more work was not done to refresh the legislation and to establish whether what was passed in 2016 is still relevant and required. The scope of the process needs to be more clearly defined to avoid duplication with the existing oversight and accountability bodies, which the profession also pays for. Will the Minister commit to saying that that clarity will be provided and set out clearly, and will he advise when it will be available? Secondly, I am extremely concerned about the budget and governance process for the regulations. It was outlined to us that, to date, the commissioner has been operating without the powers in those statutory rules at a modest cost to the Department, but, with those powers, the costs will increase, because an office and a staff are to be set up. In response to my queries about how much that was estimated to be, no estimate or business plan seemed to be in place. In an attempt to address my concerns, it was outlined that the spend on running costs throughout the year would not be a cost to the Department of Finance but that it would be recouped retrospectively at the end of the year by charging a levy to all members of the legal profession in Northern Ireland. That has caused me more concern, not less, as that expenditure behaviour looks as though operations are progressing with, in effect, a blank cheque. There is no incentive for any commissioner or their staff to live within a designated budget. Cost control mechanisms should be built in. The Department wants to commence the legislation from September, but it is clear that it does not know what it needs or what the cost will be. Just because the final cost does not lie in the Department of Finance's budget does not mean that it is not its responsibility to manage the finances and governance and to ensure that the levy that will be passed on to the sector is of fair value. I ask the Minister to please outline what the financial governance process will be in the matter as it progresses through his Department. Will there be a business plan? Who will it be presented to? Who will oversee it? Also, what is in place to prevent expansion and an increase in costs to the level of some other commissioners, which hit around £1 million a year, or ombudsmen, which have a much higher annual cost? We need assurance that it is future-proofed and that a review mechanism is built in. I am somewhat surprised that the leader of the Opposition does not appear to share my concerns. Of utmost importance to him is which Minister is in the Chamber and bringing questions on the A5, but my key concerns in this matter are the financial controls in the statutory rules that we are debating. I also highlight my concerns about access to justice in Northern Ireland. My colleague Joanne Bunting, Chair of the Justice Committee, has outlined to me that many Justice Committee evidence sessions from the profession have indicated that many solicitors' firms are closing, particularly the small, more local firms that also undertake legal aid work. I know that from my own area. It is widespread in rural communities, and I note that there will be an Adjournment debate today on access to legal services in Fermanagh and South Tyrone. It is also happening in our cities. Northern Ireland is facing an access to justice crisis, and we have seen a new all-party group established in the Assembly on that topic. From this point, I want to highlight the need to closely monitor and control the impact that the new commissioner will have on the legal profession, which is facing significant pressures currently. My final query that I raised at Committee and that has not yet been answered is whether this commissioner has been granted powers with any built-in safeguards for the unfortunate circumstances in which it is required that the commissioner be suspended pending investigation. Have we learned the lessons from the recent issues with the Police Ombudsman, who, bizarrely, was unable to be suspended whilst under investigation? I ask the Minister whether safeguards are built in here as, again, no answer was forthcoming in Committee and we are here today. I note that the Chair of the Finance Committee has stated that the Committee agreed to seek a further update on the costs, running and governance of the office at the end of the year, but I wanted to draw those points out today because I feel so strongly that it needs to be addressed up front. Plans under these statutory rules will commence from September 2025, and I do not believe that it is appropriate to approve the establishment of a commissioner's office with what is effectively a blank cheque, with no budget in place, unclear controls, no review mechanisms and imposing levies on legal practitioners to cover the cost. I hope that the Minister appreciates my concerns on that and that we cannot support progressing without clarity on those issues.

974 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 12:55 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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