Roy Beggs | |
---|---|
Member of Larne Borough Council | |
In office 15 May 1985 –22 May 2014 | |
Preceded by | District created |
Succeeded by | Council abolished |
Constituency | Larne Lough |
In office 30 May 1973 –15 May 1985 | |
Preceded by | District created |
Succeeded by | District abolished |
Constituency | Larne Area B |
Member of Parliament for East Antrim | |
In office 9 June 1983 –11 April 2005 | |
Preceded by | New constituency |
Succeeded by | Sammy Wilson |
Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly for North Antrim | |
In office 20 October 1982 –1986 | |
Preceded by | Assembly re-established |
Succeeded by | Assembly dissolved |
Personal details | |
Born | Ballyclare,County Antrim,Northern Ireland | 20 February 1936
Nationality | British |
Political party | Ulster Unionist Party (1982-present) |
Other political affiliations | Democratic Unionist Party (1973 - 1981) |
Spouse | Wilma Beggs |
Relations | Roy Beggs Jnr (son) |
Children | 4 |
Residence | Larne |
Alma mater | Stranmillis University College |
Profession | Teacher |
Website | Roy Beggs |
John Robert Beggs (born 20 February 1936),commonly known as Roy Beggs,is a Northern Irish unionist politician and former teacher. Formerly a member of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP),he defected to the rival Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) in 1981. He served as Member of Parliament (MP) for East Antrim from 1983 to 2005,and was a Larne Borough Councillor from 1973 to 2014,representing the district of Larne Area B and its successor,Larne Lough.
Beggs was educated at Ballyclare High School,followed by Stranmillis College,to study teacher training. [1] After his training Beggs became a teacher at Larne High School and had risen to be deputy principal before leaving the profession upon his election to the Westminster Parliament. [1]
He first entered politics in 1973 as a councillor for Larne Borough Council. [1] for the Democratic Unionist Party. [2] He was suspended from the party in 1981 after taking part in a council visit to Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown County Council local authority in Dublin. [3] [ dead link ] He moved to the Ulster Unionist Party and was re-elected in 1981 as a 'loyalist'. [2] He joined the UUP in 1982 and has retained his council seat to date,serving several terms as Mayor of Larne from 1978 until 1983. [4] In 1982 he was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly representing North Antrim. [1]
In 1983 he was selected for the new East Antrim in the 1983 general election. [4] With most expecting the DUP to win the seat, [5] he became the new MP in the surprise result. He held the position until the 2005 general election when he was defeated by Sammy Wilson of the DUP. [6] He was UUP Education Spokesman from 1986 up to and including his last few years in Parliament when he also served as Deputy Leader and Chief Whip of the Ulster Unionist Parliamentary Party. [1]
Beggs was known as one of the more hard-line members of the UUP,being vociferous in his Euroscepticism and his suspicions about the Belfast Agreement - initially involving himself in Union First (a group within the Ulster Unionist Party opposed to the Agreement),although in his final two years in Parliament,he appeared publicly supportive of the Agreement and of leader David Trimble. A renowned opponent of "progressive" teaching methods and a supporter of maintaining Northern Ireland's grammar schools,he attacked proposals to abolish academic selection in post-primary education in Northern Ireland.
Beggs was also a strong supporter of the Orange Order during their stand-off over Drumcree Church and in 1995 took part in a blockade of the port of Larne as part of a show of solidarity. Beggs was charged with Public Order offences for his involvement and was fined £1,350. In March 2001,he apologised in the House of Commons for failing to register a local business interest. [3]
He lives in Larne and operates a farm and owns a landfill site. He is also the Chairman of the North Eastern Education and Library Board,as well as continuing his council work. He has four children. His son,Roy Beggs Jr was a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly from 1998 until losing his seat in the 2022 Northern Ireland Assembly election. [7]
The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded as the Ulster Unionist Council in 1905,emerging from the Irish Unionist Alliance in Ulster. Under Edward Carson,it led unionist opposition to the Irish Home Rule movement. Following the partition of Ireland,it was the governing party of Northern Ireland between 1921 and 1972. It was supported by most unionist voters throughout the conflict known as the Troubles,during which time it was often referred to as the Official Unionist Party (OUP).
James Henry Molyneaux,Baron Molyneaux of Killead,KBE,PC,often known as Jim Molyneaux,was a unionist politician from Northern Ireland who served as leader of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) from 1979 to 1995,and as the Member of Parliament (MP) for South Antrim from 1970 to 1983,and later Lagan Valley from 1983 to 1997. An Orangeman,he was also Sovereign Grand Master of the Royal Black Institution from 1971 to 1995,and a leading member of the Conservative Monday Club.
Sir Alfred Cecil Walker was an Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) politician,who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for North Belfast from 1983 to 2001.
Roy Beggs Jr is an Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) politician,serving as a Mid and East Antrim Councillor for the Larne Lough DEA since 2023. Beggs served as a Deputy Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly from 2011 to 2016,and 2020 to 2022. He was a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly (MLA) for East Antrim from 1998 to 2022.
James Hugh Allister is a Northern Irish politician and barrister who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for North Antrim since the 2024 general election. He founded the Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) in 2007 and has led the party since its formation. Prior to his election to Westminster,Allister was a member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for North Antrim,having been first elected in the 2011 Assembly election.
East Antrim is a parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom House of Commons. It is currently represented by Sammy Wilson of the Democratic Unionist Party.
South Antrim is a parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom House of Commons. The current MP is Robin Swann (UUP)
Anne Letitia Dickson CBE is a former Northern Irish Unionist politician.
Larne Borough Council was a Local Council in County Antrim in Northern Ireland. It merged with Ballymena Borough Council and Carrickfergus Borough Council in May 2015 under the reorganisation of local government in Northern Ireland to become Mid and East Antrim Borough Council.
The Northern Ireland Assembly established in 1982 represented an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to restore the devolution to Northern Ireland which had been suspended 10 years previously. The Assembly was dissolved in 1986.
Jack McKee was a Northern Irish unionist politician who served as a Larne Borough Councillor for the Larne Area C DEA from 1973 to 1985,and then for Larne Town from 1985 to 2014.
Frank Millar is a Northern Irish journalist and former unionist politician.
The Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. In common with all other Northern Irish unionist parties,the TUV's political programme has as its sine qua non the preservation of Northern Ireland's place within the United Kingdom. A founding precept of the party is that "nothing which is morally wrong can be politically right".
Captain Robert Austin Ardill MC was a Northern Irish unionist politician.
James Anderson Craig was a Northern Irish unionist politician who was a founder member of,and early leading figure in,the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP).
The fourth Northern Ireland Assembly was the unicameral devolved legislature of Northern Ireland following the 2011 assembly election on 5 May 2011. This iteration of the elected Assembly convened for the first time on 12 May 2011 in Parliament Buildings in Stormont,and ran for a full term.
Roy Thompson is a former Northern Irish unionist politician who has served as both a Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) representative.
The 2005 United Kingdom general election in Northern Ireland was held on 5 May 2005 and all 18 seats in Northern Ireland were contested. 1,139,993 people were eligible to vote,down 51,016 from the 2001 general election. 63.49% of eligible voters turned out,down 5.1 percentage points from the last general election.
Robert Lindsay Mason,known as Lindsay Mason,was a Northern Irish unionist politician and businessman. Known as something of an eccentric,Mason's entire career in politics was spent outside the major unionist parties such as the Ulster Unionist Party and the Democratic Unionist Party.
Thomas Daniel Robinson,known as Tom Robinson,is a former Northern Irish unionist politician who was a Larne Borough Councillor for the Larne Area A DEA from 1977 to 1985,and then for the Coast Road DEA from 1985 to 2001,representing the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) on both occasions.