Acting as an oversight and advisory body, the Commission will guide Departments towards designing and implementing decarbonisation policies that are equitable in nature, offering greatest assistance to those that are most heavily affected by climate change action. The Just Transition Commission will include representation from a number of sectors including agriculture, the environment, trade unions and youth groups.

The initial consultation period for the establishment of the Just Transition Commission took place over a ten-week period between November 2024 and January 2025. With an aim to gathering respondents’ views on the type of public body the Commission should be, as well as its  the composition, role and legislated functions, DAERA also sought views on whether additional sectors should be represented to those specified for representation in the Climate Change Act (NI). This process has also seen contributions from several independent organisations, including The Climate Change Committee’s Interim Chair Piers Forster, who submitted a list of recommendations surrounding the Commission’s goals, focus and membership.

Internally, The Northern Ireland Assembly has also conducted research regarding the Just Transition. In September 2024, prior to the official consultation process, The NI Assembly’s Research and Information Service published a Research Paper entitled Just Transition: Background and Examples, wherein the evolution of the concept of a ‘just transition’ was explored, as well as how organisations at a national and international level define and operationalise the term.

Though much work remains before the Just Transition Commission becomes fully operational, Minister Muir has called this step an ‘important milestone’ and is optimistic on continued progress through the Assembly scrutiny process.