COMMITTEE SCRUTINY WITHIN A CONSOCIATIONAL CONTEXT: A NORTHERN IRELAND CASE STUDY

This article considers non‐legislative committee scrutiny at the Northern Ireland Assembly. The core question is: How is such committee scrutiny diminished through the consociational/power‐sharing context? The question is assessed in terms of three phases – selection, obtaining evidence, and evaluative – and through eight specific claims. Consideration is also given to the context of the absence of a formal opposition, ways in which politicians can circumvent consociational constraints, and connections to the current reform agenda at the Assembly. Overall, the study identifies significant support for the claims in terms of practice at the Assembly and suggests that these findings offer opportunities for other scholars to develop further the literature on consociational governance. There is also a clear association with wider issues of the balance of power between legislatures and executives more generally.