Minister for Employment and Learning
| An Roinn Fostaíochta agus Foghlama; Ulster Scots: Depairtment for Employ an Learnin | |
| Department overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | December 1999 (as Department of Higher and Further Education, Training and Employment) |
| Preceding Department |
|
| Dissolved | 6 May 2016 |
| Superseding agency | |
| Jurisdiction | Northern Ireland |
| Headquarters | Adelaide House, 39–49 Adelaide Street, Belfast, BT2 8FD |
| Employees | 2,111 (September 2011) |
| Annual budget | £787.3 million (current) & £41.2 million (capital) for 2011–12 |
| Website | www.delni.gov.uk |
The Department for Employment and Learning (DEL), (Irish: An Roinn Fostaíochta agus Foghlama;Ulster Scots: Depairtment for Employ an Learnin), was a devolved Northern Ireland government department in the Northern Ireland Executive. The minister with overall responsibility for the department was the Minister for Employment and Learning. The department was initially known as the Department of Higher and Further Education, Training and Employment (DHFETE), between 1999 and 2001.
Following the Fresh Start Agreement, DEL was dissolved and its functions transferred to the Department for the Economy and Department for Communities, in order to reduce the size of the Northern Ireland Executive.
DEL's overall aim was to "promote learning and skills, to prepare people for work and to support the economy".
The department's network of 'job centres' and 'jobs and benefits offices' advertised job opportunities for Northern Ireland residents. It was also responsible for policy in the following areas:
The Department of Education was responsible for all other levels of education in Northern Ireland. DEL's main counterparts in the United Kingdom Government were:
In the Irish Government, its main counterparts were:
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. The process was known as devolution and was set up to return devolved legislative powers to Northern Ireland. DEL is one of five new devolved Northern Ireland departments created in December 1999 by the Northern Ireland Act 1998 and The Departments (Northern Ireland) Order 1999.
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