Executive of the 2nd Northern Ireland Assembly

Following the suspension of the Northern Ireland Assembly in 2002 a new election was called in November 2003 in hope of restoring devolution, the election saw the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and Sinn Féin emerge as the largest parties in the Assembly.^[6] The DUP refused to go into government with Sinn Féin meaning that direct rule would stay in place for another 5 years.

Direct Rule (2002-2007) Executive of the 2nd Northern Ireland Assembly
Date formed	14 October 2002
Date dissolved	8 May 2007 (under the St Andrews Agreement[1])
People and organisations
Head of state	Elizabeth II
Head of government	Secretary of State John Reid (Oct 2002) [2] Paul Murphy (Oct 2002 - May 2005) [3] Peter Hain (May 2005 - May 2007) [4]
Deputy head of government	None
No. of ministers	None
Member party	None
Status in legislature	Direct Rule [5]
History
Election	2003 assembly election
Legislature term	2nd Assembly (never convened)
Predecessor	1st Executive of Northern Ireland
Successor	3rd Executive of Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland had 3 Secretaries of States during the period of direct rule:^[5]

• John Reid in October 2002,^[2]
• Paul Murphy between October 2002 and May 2005,^[3]
• Peter Hain between May 2005 and May 2007.^[4]

The assembly was officially dissolved in 2007 following the St Andrews Agreement.^[1]

Executive committee

Office	Name	Term
First Minister	Vacant [7]	2002–07
Deputy First Minister	Vacant [7]	2002–07
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development	Vacant [7]	2002–07
Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure	Vacant [7]	2002–07
Minister of Education	Vacant [7]	2002–07
Minister for Employment and Learning	Vacant [7]	2002–07
Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment	Vacant [7]	2002–07
Minister of the Environment	Vacant [7]	2002–07
Minister of Finance and Personnel	Vacant [7]	2002–07
Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety	Vacant [7]	2002–07
Minister for Regional Development	Vacant [7]	2002–07
Minister for Social Development	Vacant [7]	2002–07