3rd Northern Ireland Assembly facts for kids
Quick facts for kids 3rd Northern Ireland Assembly |
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| Overview | |||||||||||||
| Legislative body | Assembly | ||||||||||||
| Jurisdiction | Northern Ireland | ||||||||||||
| Meeting place | Parliament Buildings, Stormont |
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| Term | 13 March 2007 – 23 March 2011 | ||||||||||||
| Election | 2007 assembly election | ||||||||||||
| Government | Executive of the 3rd Assembly | ||||||||||||
| Members | 108 | ||||||||||||
| Speaker | William Hay — Eileen Bell until 8 May 2007 |
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| First Minister | Peter Robinson — Arlene Foster until 3 February 2010 — Peter Robinson until 11 January 2010 — Ian Paisley until 5 June 2008 |
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| Deputy First Minister | Martin McGuinness | ||||||||||||
| Sessions | |||||||||||||
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The 3rd Northern Ireland Assembly was a group of politicians who worked together to make laws for Northern Ireland. They were elected on 7 March 2007. This group was special because it was the first time the Assembly completed its full term.
The Assembly met at the Parliament Buildings in Stormont. Its job was to govern Northern Ireland and make important decisions for everyone living there.
Contents
Understanding the 3rd Northern Ireland Assembly
The Northern Ireland Assembly is like a parliament for Northern Ireland. Its members, called MLAs, are chosen by the public in elections. These MLAs represent different political parties and areas.
How Many Members Were There?
The 3rd Northern Ireland Assembly had 108 members. These members belonged to different political parties. Each party had a certain number of seats, showing how much support they had from voters.
Party Strengths: Who Held the Power?
The table below shows how many members each party had when the Assembly started in March 2007 and when it finished in March 2011. The parties marked with a black circle (●) were part of the government, called the Northern Ireland Executive.
| Party | Designation | Mar 2007 election |
Mar 2011 end |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ● | Democratic Unionist Party | Unionist | 36 | 35 |
| ● | Sinn Féin | Nationalist | 28 | 27 |
| ● | Ulster Unionist Party | Unionist | 18 | 16 |
| ● | Social Democratic and Labour Party | Nationalist | 16 | 16 |
| ● | Alliance Party of Northern Ireland | Other | 7 | 7 |
| Progressive Unionist Party | Unionist | 1 | 0 | |
| Green Party in Northern Ireland | Other | 1 | 1 | |
| Independent | Nationalist | 0 | 1 | |
| Independent | Other | 1 | 1 | |
| Independent | Unionist | 0 | 3 | |
| Speaker | None | 0 | 1 | |
| Total | 108 | |||
| ● = Northern Ireland Executive | ||||
How the Assembly Looked
These pictures show how the different parties were represented in the Assembly at different times. It's like a snapshot of the political balance.
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At election, 7 Mar 2007
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8 May to 29 Nov 2007
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3 Jan 2011 to end
This is not the actual seating plan.
Who Were the Members?
This section lists all the MLAs who were part of the 3rd Northern Ireland Assembly. They are grouped by their political party. Some members were elected directly, while others were "co-opted" (chosen to fill a spot if someone left). Some also changed their party during the term.
| Party | Name | Constituency | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic Unionist Party (35) | Sydney Anderson † | Upper Bann | |
| Jonathan Bell † | Strangford | ||
| Allan Bresland | West Tyrone | ||
| Wallace Browne | Belfast East | ||
| Thomas Buchanan | West Tyrone | ||
| Gregory Campbell | East Londonderry | ||
| Trevor Clarke | South Antrim | ||
| Jonathan Craig | Lagan Valley | ||
| Alex Easton | North Down | ||
| Arlene Foster | Fermanagh and South Tyrone | ||
| Paul Frew † | North Antrim | ||
| Simpson Gibson † | Strangford | ||
| Paul Girvan † | South Antrim | ||
| Paul Givan † | Lagan Valley | ||
| Simon Hamilton | Strangford | ||
| David Hilditch | East Antrim | ||
| William Humphrey † | Belfast North | ||
| William Irwin | Newry and Armagh | ||
| Nelson McCausland | Belfast North | ||
| Ian McCrea | Mid Ulster | ||
| Michelle McIlveen | Strangford | ||
| Adrian McQuillan | East Londonderry | ||
| Maurice Morrow | Fermanagh and South Tyrone | ||
| Stephen Moutray | Upper Bann | ||
| Robin Newton | Belfast East | ||
| Ian Paisley | North Antrim | ||
| Edwin Poots | Lagan Valley | ||
| George Robinson | East Londonderry | ||
| Peter Robinson | Belfast East | ||
| Alastair Ross † | East Antrim | ||
| Jimmy Spratt | Belfast South | ||
| Mervyn Storey | North Antrim | ||
| Peter Weir | North Down | ||
| Jim Wells | South Down | ||
| Sammy Wilson | East Antrim | ||
| Sinn Féin (27) | Martina Anderson | Foyle | |
| Cathal Boylan | Newry and Armagh | ||
| Mickey Brady | Newry and Armagh | ||
| Paul Butler | Lagan Valley | ||
| Carál Ní Chuilín | Belfast North | ||
| Willie Clarke | South Down | ||
| Pat Doherty | West Tyrone | ||
| Michelle Gildernew | Fermanagh and South Tyrone | ||
| Gerry Kelly | Belfast North | ||
| Billy Leonard † | East Londonderry | ||
| Alex Maskey | Belfast South | ||
| Paul Maskey | Belfast West | ||
| Fra McCann | Belfast West | ||
| Jennifer McCann | Belfast West | ||
| Raymond McCartney | Foyle | ||
| Barry McElduff | West Tyrone | ||
| Claire McGill | West Tyrone | ||
| Martin McGuinness | Mid Ulster | ||
| Daithí McKay | North Antrim | ||
| Mitchel McLaughlin | South Antrim | ||
| Francie Molloy | Mid Ulster | ||
| Conor Murphy | Newry and Armagh | ||
| John O'Dowd | Upper Bann | ||
| Michelle O'Neill | Mid Ulster | ||
| Sue Ramsey | Belfast West | ||
| Caitríona Ruane | South Down | ||
| Pat Sheehan † | Belfast West | ||
| Ulster Unionist Party (16) | Billy Armstrong | Mid Ulster | |
| Roy Beggs Jr | East Antrim | ||
| Danny Kinahan † | South Antrim | ||
| Fred Cobain | Belfast North | ||
| Robert Coulter | North Antrim | ||
| Leslie Cree | North Down | ||
| Tom Elliott | Fermanagh and South Tyrone | ||
| Reg Empey | Belfast East | ||
| Sam Gardiner | Upper Bann | ||
| Danny Kennedy | Newry and Armagh | ||
| John McCallister | South Down | ||
| Basil McCrea | Lagan Valley | ||
| Michael McGimpsey | Belfast South | ||
| David McNarry | Strangford | ||
| Ken Robinson | East Antrim | ||
| George Savage | Upper Bann | ||
| Social Democratic and Labour Party (16) | Alex Attwood | Belfast West | |
| Dominic Bradley | Newry and Armagh | ||
| Mary Bradley | Foyle | ||
| P. J. Bradley | South Down | ||
| Thomas Burns | South Antrim | ||
| John Dallat | East Londonderry | ||
| Pól Callaghan † | Foyle | ||
| Tommy Gallagher | Fermanagh and South Tyrone | ||
| Conall McDevitt † | Belfast South | ||
| Dolores Kelly | Upper Bann | ||
| Alban Maginness | Belfast North | ||
| Alasdair McDonnell | Belfast South | ||
| Patsy McGlone | Mid Ulster | ||
| Declan O'Loan | North Antrim | ||
| Pat Ramsey | Foyle | ||
| Margaret Ritchie | South Down | ||
| Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (7) | Stephen Farry | North Down | |
| David Ford | South Antrim | ||
| Anna Lo | Belfast South | ||
| Chris Lyttle † | Belfast East | ||
| Trevor Lunn | Lagan Valley | ||
| Kieran McCarthy | Strangford | ||
| Sean Neeson | East Antrim | ||
| Green Party of Northern Ireland (1) | Brian Wilson | North Down | |
| Independent (1) | Kieran Deeny | West Tyrone | |
| Independent Unionist (3) | Dawn Purvis ‡ | Belfast East | |
| David McClarty ‡ | East Londonderry | ||
| Alan McFarland ‡ | North Down | ||
| Independent Nationalist (1) | Gerry McHugh ‡ | Fermanagh and South Tyrone | |
| Speaker (1) | William Hay ‡ | Foyle | |
† Co-opted to replace an elected MLA
‡ Changed affiliation during the term
MLAs by Area: Where They Represented
This list shows the MLAs based on the area, or constituency, they represented. It's arranged in alphabetical order by constituency name.
† Co-opted to replace an elected MLA ‡ Changed affiliation during the term
Changes in the Assembly
During the four years the 3rd Assembly was active, some changes happened to its members. This section explains how and why these changes took place.
New Members Joining (Co-options)
Sometimes, an MLA might leave their position before the next election. This could be because they retired, moved to a different job, or for other reasons. When this happens, a new person is chosen to take their place. This process is called "co-option."
| Date co-opted | Constituency | Party | Outgoing | Co-optee | Reason | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 May 2007 | East Antrim | DUP | George Dawson | Alastair Ross | George Dawson passed away. | |
| 9 June 2009 | South Antrim | UUP | David Burnside | Danny Kinahan | David Burnside stepped down. | |
| 7 January 2010 | East Londonderry | Sinn Féin | Francie Brolly | Billy Leonard | Francie Brolly stepped down. | |
| 21 January 2010 | Belfast South | SDLP | Carmel Hanna | Conall McDevitt | Carmel Hanna stepped down. | |
| 25 January 2010 | Strangford | DUP | Iris Robinson | Jonathan Bell | Iris Robinson stepped down. | |
| 10 June 2010 | Lagan Valley | DUP | Jeffrey Donaldson | Paul Givan | Jeffrey Donaldson resigned to focus on his role as a Member of Parliament. | |
| 21 June 2010 | North Antrim | DUP | Ian Paisley Jr | Paul Frew | Ian Paisley Jr was elected as a Member of Parliament. | |
| 1 July 2010 | Upper Bann | DUP | David Simpson | Sydney Anderson | David Simpson was elected as a Member of Parliament. | |
| 1 July 2010 | South Antrim | DUP | William McCrea | Paul Girvan | William McCrea resigned to focus on his role as a Member of Parliament. | |
| 5 July 2010 | Belfast East | Alliance | Naomi Long | Chris Lyttle | Naomi Long was elected as a Member of Parliament. | |
| 2 August 2010 | Strangford | DUP | Jim Shannon | Simpson Gibson | Jim Shannon was elected as a Member of Parliament. | |
| 10 September 2010 | Belfast North | DUP | Nigel Dodds | William Humphrey | Nigel Dodds resigned to focus on his role as a Member of Parliament. | |
| 15 November 2010 | Foyle | SDLP | Mark Durkan | Pól Callaghan | Mark Durkan resigned to focus on his role as a Member of Parliament. | |
| 7 December 2010 | Belfast West | Sinn Féin | Gerry Adams | Pat Sheehan | Gerry Adams resigned to run for the Dáil Éireann (Irish Parliament). | |
Changing Parties
Sometimes, an MLA might decide to leave their political party and join a new one, or become an independent member. This is called a "change in affiliation."
| Date | Constituency | Name | Previous affiliation | New affiliation | Circumstance | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 May 2007 | Foyle | William Hay | DUP | Speaker | William Hay was chosen as the Speaker of the Assembly. The Speaker must be neutral. | ||
| 29 November 2007 | Fermanagh and South Tyrone | Gerry McHugh | Sinn Féin | Independent Nationalist | Gerry McHugh left Sinn Féin to become an independent nationalist. | ||
| 31 March 2010 | North Down | Alan McFarland | UUP | Ind U | Alan McFarland left the UUP to become an independent unionist. | ||
| 3 June 2010 | Belfast East | Dawn Purvis | PUP | Ind U | Dawn Purvis left the PUP to become an independent unionist. | ||
| 3 January 2011 | East Londonderry | David McClarty | UUP | Ind U | David McClarty left the UUP after not being chosen to run in the 2011 election. | ||
