Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many meetings he has had with the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission on the Bill of Rights bill.

The Secretary of State has written to Alyson Kilpatrick, the Chief Commissioner of the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission, about the Bill of Rights twice in the last year, in addition to which my predecessor Lord Wolfson met representatives of the Commission in March this year in the context of the Government’s consultation. Departmental officials have also met representatives of the Commission on a number of occasions in the past year to discuss work on the Bill of Rights.

We will continue to work closely with key stakeholders in Northern Ireland on the Bill of Rights, including the Human Rights Commission, to ensure that any reforms will work in, and for the benefit of, the whole of the UK