NI Executive agrees in principle to extend Breathing Space to Northern Ireland via UK statutory instrument

The Northern Ireland Executive has agreed in principle to work with HM Treasury to introduce statutory Breathing Space protections in Northern Ireland through a UK statutory instrument made under section 7 of the Financial Guidance and Claims Act 2018, the Department for Communities said in a written statement published on 29 April 2026¹.

Breathing Space is a statutory debt respite scheme already operating in England and Wales, the department said. It provides temporary legal protections from creditor enforcement action for people experiencing problem debt, including pauses on enforcement action and freezes on most interest and charges¹. A standard breathing space lasts 60 days, while a Mental Health Crisis Breathing Space offers the same protections for individuals in a mental health crisis, lasting as long as their mental health crisis treatment¹. The department said introducing these provisions in Northern Ireland "will close an existing consumer-protection gap and align us with other UK administrations"¹.

The statement also confirms that the Debt Respite (Northern Ireland) Bill will be withdrawn from the Legislative Programme, "as it is no longer required"¹. Previously, it had been intended that the Bill would legislate for both Breathing Space and a Statutory Debt Repayment Plan (SDRP)¹. The department said the SDRP has not been introduced at UK level, and that section 7 of the Financial Guidance and Claims Act 2018 provides the power to create a Breathing Space scheme in Northern Ireland¹. Future consideration of an SDRP will depend on the UK Government's wider review of personal insolvency arrangements¹.

The department said the work is subject to further policy development and consultation, final UK Ministerial approval, and will require draft Regulations to be laid before and approved by the Northern Ireland Assembly under the draft affirmative resolution procedure, as well as approved under the Westminster affirmative resolution procedure¹. It said it is working closely with HM Treasury and will continue engagement with Committees, stakeholders and the public as the statutory instrument is developed¹.

Why it matters for households

People in Northern Ireland experiencing problem debt do not currently have access to the statutory Breathing Space scheme that operates in England and Wales¹. If the regulations are made, eligible people in Northern Ireland would gain the same temporary protections described by the department: a pause on creditor enforcement action and a freeze on most interest and charges, for 60 days in a standard case, or for the duration of mental health crisis treatment under a Mental Health Crisis Breathing Space¹. The protections would apply once the regulations are in force; no commencement date has been reported.

The change would also affect how debt advice and insolvency routes in Northern Ireland interact with the wider UK framework. The withdrawal of the Debt Respite Bill means the SDRP element will not proceed through that Bill, and any future SDRP in Northern Ireland depends on the UK Government's review of personal insolvency arrangements¹. The department has not reported a timetable for the regulations, and the consultation, Ministerial approval and Assembly and Westminster approval stages have not yet taken place¹.

What happens next

The department said the work requires further policy development and consultation, final UK Ministerial approval, and approval of draft Regulations by the Northern Ireland Assembly under the draft affirmative resolution procedure and under the Westminster affirmative resolution procedure¹. It said it will update the Assembly as work progresses¹. No dates for these stages have been reported.

Households dealing with problem debt can read about Breathing Space: the 60-day protection from creditors, mental health crisis Breathing Space and whether Breathing Space stops bailiffs, court action and eviction. For Northern Ireland specifically, there are guides to bankruptcy in Northern Ireland, IVAs in Northern Ireland and courts and legal systems for money disputes.