Employees 731 (September 2011) | ||
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Formed June 1944 (as Ministry of Health and Local Government) Preceding Department Ministry of Home Affairs Headquarters Castle Buildings, Stormont Estate, Belfast, BT4 3SJ Annual budget £4,383.1 million (current) & £200.5 million (capital) for 2011–12 | ||
The Department of Health (DoH, Irish: An Roinn Sláinte, Ulster-Scots: Männystrie o Poustie) is a devolved Northern Irish government department in the Northern Ireland Executive. The minister with overall responsibility for the department is the Minister of Health.
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Until 9 May 2016, the Department was previously called the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety (Irish: An Roinn Sláinte, Seirbhísí Sóisialta agus Sábháilteachta Poiblí).
Aim
DoH's overall aim and mission is to "improve the health and social well-being of the people of Northern Ireland."
The incumbent Minister is Michelle O'Neill (Sinn Féin).
Responsibilities
The Minister, assisted by the department, makes policy and legislation in three broad areas:
Some sensitive health policy issues are reserved to Westminster and are therefore not devolved:
In Northern Ireland, abortion law is a criminal justice matter and is devolved.
DoH's main counterparts in the United Kingdom Government are:
In the Irish Government, its main counterparts are:
Health and Social Care organisations
The Health and Social Care system in Northern Ireland consists of the following public bodies:
Northern Ireland-wide
Sub-regional health and social care trusts
History
Health policy in Northern Ireland was originally a responsibility of local government and the Ministry of Home Affairs, which (similarly to the Home Office) retained responsibility for policy areas not delegated to other ministries.
A separate Ministry of Health and Local Government was established in June 1944, as part of the welfare state. In January 1965, that department was divided between the Ministry of Development and the Ministry of Health and Social Services.
The latter ministry was renamed as the Department of Health and Social Services under direct rule, introduced in March 1972. A health and social services ministry was also included in the Northern Ireland Executive briefly established in 1974. The department was responsible for social security policy and its initials DHSS are still used locally to describe benefits and benefit claimants.
Following a referendum on the Belfast Agreement on 23 May 1998 and the granting of royal assent to the Northern Ireland Act 1998 on 19 November 1998, a Northern Ireland Assembly and Northern Ireland Executive were established by the United Kingdom Government under Prime Minister Tony Blair.
In December 1999, the Department of Health and Social Services was renamed as the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety. It gained responsibility for the Northern Ireland Fire Brigade from the Department of the Environment but ceded social security to the Department for Social Development. DHSSPS was therefore one of the six direct rule Northern Ireland departments to continue in existence following devolution, following the Northern Ireland Act 1998 and The Departments (Northern Ireland) Order 1999.
A devolved minister took office on 2 December 1999. Devolution was suspended for four periods, during which the department came under the responsibility of direct rule ministers from the Northern Ireland Office:
Since 8 May 2007, devolution has operated without interruption.
Direct rule ministers
During the periods of suspension, the following ministers of the Northern Ireland Office were responsible for the department: