Move to raise NI minimum criminal age to 14 blocked (opens original article in a new tab)

Unionist parties in Northern Ireland blocked a proposal to raise the minimum age of criminal responsibility from 10 to 14 by using a petition of concern mechanism, requiring cross-community support for any future vote on the issue.

• Unionist parties blocked raising Northern Ireland's minimum criminal age from 10 to 14 using a petition of concern
• The petition required 30 signatures and passed with four Ulster Unionist MLAs supporting it
• The amendment aimed to increase the age with exceptions for serious crimes like murder