On this page, you will find all the evidence we have submitted to various governmental select committees.

Evidence Submission to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee ‘Citizenship and Passport Processes’ Inquiry

PI’s Colin Murray and Clare Rice have submitted evidence to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee as part of the ‘Citizenship and Passport Processes in Northern Ireland’ Inquiry.

The submission examines some of the post-Brexit complexities that Brexit has given rise to in Northern Ireland for citizenship, particularly in relation to the provisions of the Good Friday/Belfast Agreement.

Their submission is available to download here:


This is a topic that the PI has also written extensively on, including a report for the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission. See ‘Continuing EU Citizenship “Rights, Opportunities and Benefits” in Northern Ireland after Brexit‘ for more analysis on this.

Evidence Submitted to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee – ‘Brexit and the Northern Ireland Protocol’ Inquiry

PI’s Colin Murray and Clare Rice have submitted evidence to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee in relation to its ‘Brexit and the Northern Ireland Protocol’ Inquiry.

This submission takes some initial stock of the early outworking of the Protocol in Northern Ireland, identifying some of the key challenges that have been faced and the reasons for these. It also examines Article 16 of the Protocol, and considers some practical and political dynamics around Article 18’s democratic consent provision for the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Evidence to Bill of Rights Committee

PI’s Colin Murray and Clare Rice have submitted evidence to the Northern Ireland Assembly’s Ad-hoc Committee on a Bill of Rights. This evidence has been submitted in response to the Committee’s on-going call for evidence covering different perspectives on a Bill of Rights for Northern Ireland.

The Committee is also conducting an online survey [available here] to gather a range of views – the deadline for completing this is 29th January 2021.

In the meantime, Colin and Clare’s submission can be viewed here:

Evidence to NIAC – Cross-border co-operation on policing, security and criminal justice after Brexit

Colin Murray joined a panel of experts on Wednesday 13th January to provide oral evidence to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee as part of its ‘Cross-border co-operation on policing, security and criminal justice after Brexit’ inquiry.

Colin joined Gemma Davies (Associate Professor, Northumbria Law School at Northumbria University), Prof. Valsamis Mitsilegas (School of Law at Queen Mary University of London), and Prof. Steve Peers (School of Law at University of Essex).

The session covered a range of important areas, including access to data, extradition, UK post-Brexit security and UK-Ireland cooperation.

The full session is available to watch back at this link: https://parliamentlive.tv/event/index/752c46b4-216b-4bab-af4c-e4fda8309344

Colin Murray, as quoted in The Irish Times: “You take this brick out then this co-operation win that has come as part of the agreement will simply fall away”
Colin Murray providing historical context to the new suspect surrender arrangements under the TCA

We will also be sharing further updates and analysis on this over on our Twitter account @performidentity

Wed 13 Jan – Evidence to NI Affairs Committee

PI’s Colin Murray has been invited to provide oral evidence to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee on 13th January 2021, as part of the ‘Cross-border co-operation on policing, security and criminal justice after Brexit’ inquiry.

Colin will join Gemma Davies (Associate Professor, Northumbria Law School at Northumbria University), Prof. Valsamis Mitsilegas (School of Law at Queen Mary University of London), and Prof. Steve Peers (School of Law at University of Essex).

The session will be streamed live from 9.30am – watch live at this link: https://parliamentlive.tv/event/index/752c46b4-216b-4bab-af4c-e4fda8309344

We will also be posting some updates over on Twitter @performidentity

Evidence submitted to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee: ‘Cross-border co-operation on policing, security and criminal justice after Brexit’ Inquiry

PI’s Colin Murray and Clare Rice have submitted evidence to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee as part of the ‘Cross-border co-operation on policing, security and criminal justice after Brexit’ inquiry.

The submission considers key aspects of cross-border co-operation with particular reference to the potential challenges of Brexit for practicalities of this between the UK and the Republic of Ireland. It also considers some specific challenges this is likely to present for policing, security and criminal justice on the island of Ireland and the potential difficulties this will create for Northern Ireland.

The full submission is available to view here:

Evidence submitted to the EU International Agreements Sub-Committee: Inquiry on Treaty Scrutiny

Colin Murray and Clare Rice have submitted evidence to the EU International Agreements Sub-Committee as part of the inquiry on Treaty Scrutiny. It outlines that post-Brexit, treaty scrutiny is going to matter more than ever in light of Northern Ireland’s position under the Protocol needing ongoing consideration. The submission focuses mainly on the role of the devolved institutions in this, and suggests some ways in which the scrutiny powers of the UK Parliament can be enhanced.

Evidence to the Joint Committee on Human Rights: Immigration and Social Security Co-ordination (EU Withdrawal) Bill 2020

PI team members Sylvia de Mars, Colin Murray, Aoife O’Donoghue and Ben Warwick have submitted evidence to the Joint Committee on Human Rights with regard to the Immigration and Social Security Co-ordination (EU Withdrawal) Bill 2020.

This submission focuses on Clause 2 of the bill, which relates to Irish citizens. In particular, it is highlighted that the omission within the Explanatory Notes of all reference to the Good Friday/Belfast Agreement (GFA) is concerning.