The enactment of the Organ and Tissue Donation (Deemed Consent) Act (Northern Ireland) 2022 has been delayed in the absence of a functioning Northern Ireland Assembly to pass secondary legislation specifying which organs and tissues it applies to.

Northern Ireland secretary Chris Heaton-Harris today announced that it will amend the Northern Ireland (Executive Formation) Bill, currently being considered by MPs, to allow Northern Ireland’s Department of Health to make the necessary regulations.

In a statement, Mr Heaton-Harris said he was making the amendments “in recognition of how important this issue is”, having spoken to the family of Dáithí Mac Gabhann, a six-year-old boy who is awaiting a heart transplant.

Mr Heaton-Harris added: “The UK government’s intervention here is exceptional. Decisions such as these should be being taken by locally-elected decision-makers.”