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Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill

It is one thing for the Minister to say that the rules that apply in the House of Commons should apply in the Northern Ireland Assembly. If everything was standing on all fours, that would be a sound argument to make. However, that is not the case. The Executive here are formed by means of a voluntary coalition. The Executive that will be formed in Northern Ireland will be a mandatory coalition under the Belfast agreement proposals, and under any other proposals that the Government have considered. On that basis, there will be no Prime Minister choosing the suitability of individuals. As the hon. Member for Foyle (Mark Durkan) has said, they will not be vetted in any way, so there will not be a similar set of circumstances, and that is why the conditions set out in the amendments must be applied.