Consultation on the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) Equality and Disability Action Plans 2026-2029

Overview

This is a public consultation by the Public Prosecution Service for Northern Ireland (PPS) to seek your views on our equality and disability action plans for 2026-2029.

Draft PPS Equality Action Plan 1 April 2026 – 31 March 2029

Section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 (the Act) requires public authorities, in carrying out their functions relating to Northern Ireland, to have due regard to the need to promote equality of opportunity and regard to the desirability of promoting good relations across a range of categories outlined in the Act.

The PPS is a designated public authority for the purposes of Section 75. It should be noted that the Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2002 added the Director of Public Prosecutions to the list of persons to which Section 75 of the NI Act 1998 applies but in so doing excluded “any functions relating to the prosecution of offences”.

This action plan has been produced in accordance with the commitments set out in the PPS’s Equality Scheme.

The Action Plan can be accessed here:

PPS Equality Action Plan 1 April 2026 – 31 March 2029

Draft PPS Disability Action Plan 1 April 2026 - 31 March 2029

Under Section 49A of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA 1995) (as amended by Article 5 of the Disability Discrimination (Northern Ireland) Order 2006), the PPS is required when carrying out its functions to have due regard to the need to:

• Promote positive attitudes towards people with disabilities; and
• Encourage participation by people with disabilities in public life (‘the disability duties’).

It should be noted that matters relating to the prosecution of offences are excluded by virtue of Section 49A(2)(a) of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (DDA 1995) (as amended by Article 5 of the Disability Discrimination (Northern Ireland) Order 2006). 

Under Section 49B of the DDA 1995, the PPS is also required to submit a Disability Action Plan (DAP) to the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland showing how it proposes to fulfil these duties in relation to our functions.

This draft plan sets out how we will work to achieve these goals. The plan makes a clear statement of our commitment to effectively fulfilling these disability duties.

The document can be accessed here:

PPS Disability Action Plan 1 April 2026 – 31 March 2029

Both Action Plans will be updated and amended during their lifetime, as and when required.

Why We Are Consulting

The PPS would welcome comments from any interested individuals or groups regarding the scope and content of these documents. You are invited to submit your views using a short questionnaire (6 questions in total) which can be accessed via the link below.

At the end of the consultation period, copies of responses received by the PPS may be made publicly available. The information will also be published in a summary of responses which will be made available on the PPS website. If you do not want all or part of your response or name made public, please state this clearly in your response. Any confidentiality disclaimer that may be generated by you or your organisation's IT system or included as a general statement in your fax cover sheet, will be taken to apply only to information in your response for which confidentiality has been specifically requested.

Any personal data which you provide will be handled in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018. Respondents should also be aware that the PPS's obligations under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 may require that responses not subject to specific exemptions in the Act may be communicated to third parties on request.

Data Protection

The Data Controller of this information is the Public Prosecution Service, 93 Chichester Street, Belfast BT1 3JR. The Data Protection Officer for the Service can be contacted at dpo@ppsni.gov.uk.

Details of why we collect your data, what we do with it, and how we protect your privacy, along with the PPS Retention and Disposal Policy (detailing the time periods for which different classes of data are retained), can be found on the PPS website. The relevant Privacy Notice can be viewed here