UUP Leader Denies Deals in Blocking Age of Criminal Responsibility Increase
The leader of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), Jon Burrows, has stated that no agreements were made to secure support for blocking proposed legislation to raise the minimum age of criminal responsibility (MACR) in Northern Ireland.
Burrows emphasized that there were
"no deals, no threats and no inducements"after he and three other UUP members signed a petition of concern initiated by the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP).
The activation of this veto mechanism means that any vote in the Northern Ireland Assembly now requires cross-community support from a majority of both unionist and nationalist members.
This action has drawn criticism from other Stormont parties that supported increasing the age at which a child can be prosecuted for most crimes from 10 to 14 years old.
Sinn Féin, Alliance, and the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) had proposed these changes as amendments to the Justice Bill.
The proposal included exceptions for serious offences such as murder, where the minimum age would be set at 12.
A valid petition of concern requires at least 30 signatures from a minimum of two parties.
Earlier, the Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) had signed the petition, but it was uncertain if enough UUP Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) would support it.
On Monday evening, it was confirmed that the petition met the required threshold after four UUP MLAs—Burrows, Diana Armstrong, Alan Chambers, and Robbie Butler—signed it.
Following this, a 14-day "consideration period" will take place before any amendments regarding the minimum age of criminal responsibility can be voted on.
Alliance deputy leader Eóin Tennyson challenged Burrows in the Assembly chamber, questioning whether he had engaged in a "grubby deal" with the DUP or members of his own party.
Burrows responded by describing the remarks as a
"shameful intervention".
Speaking at Stormont on Tuesday, Burrows described the proposed legislation as
"ill-conceived"and denied any political deals were made to sign the petition.
He told reporters,
"We got the four signatures we needed and the Petition of Concern went through. There was no deals, no threats and no inducements."
Burrows also denied suggestions of any deal with the DUP on unionist pacts in upcoming elections.
He stated,
"I haven't had a discussion about electoral pacts once. I haven't yet met (DUP leader) Gavin Robinson about electoral pacts, so that is simply untrue."
He added,
"I used a legitimate tool to protect the most vulnerable in our society."
What is a petition of concern?
The petition of concern was introduced as part of the Good Friday Agreement to safeguard minority rights within Northern Ireland's power-sharing assembly.
When a petition of concern is presented to the Assembly Speaker, any motion or amendment requires cross-community support.
In such cases, a vote on proposed legislation will only pass if supported by a weighted majority of 60% of members voting, including at least 40% of both nationalist and unionist designations present and voting.
This mechanism effectively allows a community, provided enough MLAs agree, to exercise a veto over Assembly decisions.
A notable example of its use was in 2015 when a majority of Assembly members voted in favor of same-sex marriage for the first time, but the motion was blocked after the DUP deployed a petition of concern.
In recent years, concerns have arisen that the petition of concern is being used in ways that deviate from its original purpose as a cross-community safeguard.
In response, the parties committed in the New Decade, New Approach (NDNA) deal to reduce the use of the petition of concern and restore it to its intended function, including several reforms.
The NDNA deal introduced a 14-day consideration period during which an MLA can change their mind if they initially supported a petition of concern.
Additionally, a petition can only be triggered by members from two or more parties.
What is MACR?
MACR stands for the minimum age of criminal responsibility, which is the youngest age at which a person can be arrested and charged with a crime.
Currently, the age is 10 in Northern Ireland, one of the lowest ages worldwide.
Similarly, the age is 10 in England and Wales.
In Scotland, the age is 12, the same as in the Republic of Ireland, although provisions exist for exceptional cases where criminal responsibility for the most serious offences is set at 10.
The United Nations body monitoring the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child has urged countries to raise their MACRs to at least 14.
In 2023, the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland found there was
"strong support"for raising the age from 10 to 14.
Previous attempts to amend the legislation failed to gain sufficient political support.
