The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) is a government department in the

Northern Ireland Executive The Northern Ireland Executive is the devolved government of Northern Ireland, an administrative branch of the legislature – the Northern Ireland Assembly. It is answerable to the assembly and was initially established according to the ter ...

, the devolved administration for Northern Ireland. The minister with overall responsibility for the department is the Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs. The department was called the ''Department of Agriculture and Rural Development'' between 1999 and 2016. The

Minister of Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an) agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister f ...

previously existed in the

Government of Northern Ireland (1921–1972) The Executive Committee or the Executive Committee for Northern Ireland was the government of Northern Ireland created under the ''Government of Ireland Act 1920''. Generally known as either the ''Cabinet'' or the ''Government'', the executive ...

, where the department was known as the ''Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland'' or the ''Ministry of Agriculture''. The current Permanent Secretary is Denis McMahon.

Responsibility

The department has responsibility for food, farming, environmental, fisheries, forestry and sustainability policy, and the development of the rural sector in Northern Ireland. It assists in the

sustainable development Sustainable development is an organizing principle for meeting human development goals while also sustaining the ability of natural systems to provide the natural resources and ecosystem services on which the economy and society depend. The des ...

of the agri-food, environmental, fishing and forestry sectors of the economy (having regard for the needs of the consumers, the protection of human, animal and plant health, the welfare of animals and the conservation and enhancement of the environment). It provides a business development service, a veterinary service and the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise, and is responsible to the UK Government's

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in the United K ...

(Defra) for the administration of schemes affecting the whole of the United Kingdom and also oversees the application of

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

agricultural, environmental, fisheries and rural development policy to Northern Ireland. Its main counterpart in the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...

is the

Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine ( ga, An Roinn Talmhaíochta, Bia agus Mara) is a department of the Government of Ireland. According to the department, its mission is to "lead the sustainable development of a competitive, con ...

. The department has two ''executive agencies'' – the Northern Ireland Environment Agency and the Forest Service – and also sponsors five non-departmental public bodies – the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute, the Agricultural Wages Board for Northern Ireland, the Livestock and Meat Commission for Northern Ireland, the Northern Ireland Fishery Harbour Authority, and the Drainage Council for Northern Ireland. The department's name is often abbreviated to DAERA and the following abbreviations are also used when describing and reporting on its responsibilities: *AFBI – Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute *AWB – Agricultural Wages Board for Northern Ireland *CAFRE – College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise *DARD – its main predecessor (the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development) *DCAL – previous department (Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure) *Defra – Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (UK) *DoE – previous department (Department of the Environment) *LMC – Livestock and Meat Commission for Northern Ireland *NIEA – Northern Ireland Environment Agency *NIFHA – Northern Ireland Fishery Harbour Authority DAERA is anecdotally known as the ''Department of Agriculture'' by many farmers and members of the public. Agriculture (and

agricultural subsidies An agricultural subsidy (also called an agricultural incentive) is a government incentive paid to agribusinesses, agricultural organizations and farms to supplement their income, manage the supply of agricultural commodities, and influence the ...

) has a more significant in the Northern Ireland economy than in the overall

UK economy The economy of the United Kingdom is a highly developed social market and market-orientated economy. It is the sixth-largest national economy in the world measured by nominal gross domestic product (GDP), ninth-largest by purchasing power pa ...

; the structure of agriculture is more similar to the sector in the Republic of Ireland. The future of agriculture is a major local issue in

Brexit Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or ...

History

As with the governance of Northern Ireland more generally, the history of the department and its predecessors can be divided into the following main periods: *

Dublin Castle administration Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 cen ...

(prior to 1921) *Government of Northern Ireland (officially the

Executive Committee of the Privy Council of Northern Ireland Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive dire ...

, 1921–1972) *

direct rule Direct rule is when an imperial or central power takes direct control over the legislature, executive and civil administration of an otherwise largely self-governing territory. Examples Chechnya In 1991, Chechen separatists declared independence o ...

administration by the

United Kingdom Government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_es ...

(1972–1999) *

(1999–2017, with

during suspensions) *

Northern Ireland Civil Service The Northern Ireland Civil Service (NICS; ga, Státseirbhís Thuaisceart Éireann; Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ''Norlin Airlann Cïvil Sarvice'') is the permanent bureaucracy of employees that supports the Northern Ireland Executive, ...

administration (in the absence of an Executive) The ''Department of Agriculture and Technical Instruction'' (DATI), established by

Horace Plunkett Sir Horace Curzon Plunkett (24 October 1854 – 26 March 1932), was an Anglo-Irish agricultural reformer, pioneer of agricultural cooperatives, Unionist MP, supporter of Home Rule, Irish Senator and author. Plunkett, a younger brother of Jo ...

was responsible for agricultural policy for the whole island of Ireland under the

from 1899 onwards. A separate ''

Ministry of Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an) agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister f ...

'' was established at the foundation of Northern Ireland in 1921, with Sir Edward Archdale as its initial minister. The last Act of the

Parliament of Northern Ireland The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which sat from 7 June 1921 to 30 March 1972, when it was suspended because of its inability to restore ord ...

was the

Agriculture (Abolition of County Committees) Act (Northern Ireland) 1972 Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

, which received

royal assent Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in other ...

on 28 March 1972. This was subsequently known as the ''Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland'' under

; Northern Ireland was included in the

Common Agricultural Policy The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is the agricultural policy of the European Union. It implements a system of agricultural subsidies and other programmes. It was introduced in 1962 and has since then undergone several changes to reduce the ...

from January 1973, when the UK joined the

. An agricultural ministry with an

Ulster Unionist Party The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded in 1905, emerging from the Irish Unionist Alliance in Ulster. Under Edward Carson, it led unionist opposition to the Irish Home Rule movem ...

minister,

Leslie Morrell Leslie Morrell (born 26 December 1931) is a former unionist politician in Northern Ireland. Morrell was a farmer from near Coleraine, and was active in the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP). He was elected to Coleraine Rural District Council in 1962, ...

, was included in the cross-community

which was briefly established in 1974. Following a

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

on the

Belfast Agreement The Good Friday Agreement (GFA), or Belfast Agreement ( ga, Comhaontú Aoine an Chéasta or ; Ulster-Scots: or ), is a pair of agreements signed on 10 April 1998 that ended most of the violence of The Troubles, a political conflict in No ...

in May 1998 and the granting of

to the

Northern Ireland Act 1998 __NOTOC__ The Northern Ireland Act 1998 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which allowed Westminster to devolve power to Northern Ireland, after decades of direct rule. It renamed the New Northern Ireland Assembly, established by ...

in November 1998, a

Northern Ireland Assembly sco-ulster, Norlin Airlan Assemblie , legislature = 7th Northern Ireland Assembly, Seventh Assembly , coa_pic = File:NI_Assembly.svg , coa_res = 250px , house_type = Unicameralism, Unicameral , hou ...

and

were established by the

. The Department of Agriculture was renamed as the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) in December 1999 and granted a slightly reduced remit; responsibility for inland fisheries and waterways was transferred to the newly formed

Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure The Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure (DCAL), translated in Irish as and in Ulster-Scots as , was a devolved government department in the Northern Ireland Executive. The minister with overall responsibility for the department was the Mi ...

(DCAL). Devolution was suspended for four periods, during which the department came under the responsibility of

ministers from the

Northern Ireland Office The Northern Ireland Office (NIO; ga, Oifig Thuaisceart Éireann, Ulster-Scots: ''Norlin Airlann Oaffis'') is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for Northern Ireland affairs. The NIO is led by the Secretary of State for N ...

i.e. between 12 February 2000 and 30 May 2000; on 11 August 2001; on 22 September 2001; and (most significantly) between 15 October 2002 and 8 May 2007. Devolution was restored in May 2007. The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) was established in May 2016, following a reduction in the number of government departments under the Fresh Start Agreement. The main changes relating to its remit were as follows: *the new department inherited the main functions of the former Department of Agriculture and Rural Development *environmental regulation was transferred into its remit from the former Department of the Environment *the Rivers Agency (responsible for rivers and flooding policy) was transferred to the new Department for Infrastructure *inland fisheries was transferred back from DCAL (which had received that responsibility in 1999) *DCAL was dissolved and inland waterways was transferred to the new Department for Communities Devolution continued until all ministerial offices were vacated on 26 January 2017, due to a political dispute between the

Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) is a unionist, loyalist, and national conservative political party in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1971 during the Troubles by Ian Paisley, who led the party for the next 37 years. Currently led by J ...

and

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Gri ...

Ministers

Eight Ministers of Agriculture held office between 1921 and 1972, starting with Sir Edward Archdale and concluding with

Harry West Henry William West (27 March 1917 – 5 February 2004) was a politician in Northern Ireland who served as leader of the Ulster Unionist Party from 1974 until 1979. Career to Stormont West was born in County Fermanagh and educated at Portora Ro ...

. During direct rule, ministers of the

were responsible for the department, including Lord Rooker and David Cairns. The following table indicates Ministers of Agriculture and Rural Development (between 1999 and 2016 inclusive) and the subsequent Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs.

Finance

The 2016–2017

budget allocated a £197.9 million resource budget to DAERA: *£82.2 million for European programmes and agricultural education *£44 million for animal welfare, agri-food, research and fisheries *£37.3 million for the department's veterinary service *£27.5 million for environmental funding *£5.1 million for the Forest Service *£1.8 million for the

Foyle, Carlingford and Irish Lights Commission The Foyle, Carlingford and Irish Lights Commission (FCILC) is a commission supervised by the North/South Ministerial Council with responsibility for two agencies which span the Irish border, namely the #Loughs Agency, Loughs Agency and the #Lights ...

This represented a reduction from £209.8 million in the baseline budget i.e. the amount allocated for the work carried out by the previous departments with those responsibilities. A further £48.8 million was allocated as capital expenditure: *£18.3 million for European programmes and agricultural education *£11.6 million for animal welfare, agri-food, research and fisheries *£8.3 million for environmental funding *£7.6 million for the veterinary service *£2.7 million for the Forest Service *£200,000 for the

The Common Agricultural Policy allocated £250.9 million in payments to farmers in Northern Ireland in 2016.

References

External links

DAERA
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Department Of Agriculture And Rural Development Northern Ireland Executive Agriculture in Northern Ireland Fishing in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...