MLAs agree Stormont committee chairs

Sinn Féin's incoming education minister will be held to account by the DUP after it landed the chairmanship of the Stormont Assembly…

Sinn Féin's incoming education minister will be held to account by the DUP after it landed the chairmanship of the Stormont Assembly's scrutiny committee.

The DUP will also share the agriculture committee chair where it will oversee another of Sinn Féin's ministers.

However, Sinn Féin has landed the public account committee chairmanship and will share the committee's shadowing of the DUP's finance and culture ministers.

The committee chairmanships were agreed at an hour-long meeting between the parties in Stormont.

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Under the deal hammered out today, the DUP also picked up the chairs of the health committee which will pit them against an Ulster Unionist minister, the social development committee which will see them square up to the SDLP's minister and also the ordered, standing orders and procedures and internal review committee.

Sinn Féin will also chair the committee scrutinising the Ulster Unionist employment and learning minister.

The Ulster Unionists will chair the committee of the centre, examining the works of the First and Deputy First Minister.

The party also took the chairperson's role in the regional development committee, focussing on the work of the Sinn Féin minister.

The SDLP chose two committee chairs scrutinising the work of DUP ministers at enterprise, trade and investment and also environment. The party also landed the chairmanship of the standards and privileges committee.

The Democratic Unionists chose the finance, economy, environment and culture, arts and leisure portfolios when powersharing returns on the May 8th.

Sinn Féin yesterday announced that two of its MPs, Conor Murphy and Michelle Gildernew, and two of its Assembly team, Caitriona Ruane and Gerry Kelly, would be members of the new devolved administration.

Mr Murphy is being tipped to take education, Ms Gildernew is being linked with agriculture and party sources suggested Ms Ruane would take the regional development post, with Mr Kelly serving as a junior minister alongside Martin McGuinness in the Office of First and Deputy First Ministers.

The Ulster Unionists will have two ministries, selecting health and employment and learning.

The SDLP's sole ministry will be social development and is expected to go to South Down MLA Margaret Ritchie.

The allocation of committee chairmen and vice-chairmen follows yesterday's decisions by the four devolved government parties on the ministries they will take charge of.