An equivalent to a law that enforces a mandatory minimum term of 40 years for anyone convicted of killing an emergency response worker is being considered for Northern Ireland, Stormont’s justice minister has said. Naomi Long revealed plans to consider a version of ‘Harper’s Law’ as part of a wider review of sentencing issues in a recent answer to an Assembly written question. There have been calls for the law to be introduced in Northern Ireland, where justice powers are devolved, including an online petition that attracted over 1,300 signatures. The Police Federation of Northern Ireland has also previously backed the call for the legislation to be introduced in the north. “In Northern Ireland a life sentence is already mandatory in any murder case, and, in circumstances considered appropriate by the Court, can be imposed where a defendant, like those in the Harper case, is found guilty of manslaughter,” she said.