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Edwin Poots
MLA
Edwin Poots, 2024 (cropped).jpg
Poots in 2024
7th Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly
Assumed office
3 February 2024
Deputy Carál Ní Chuilín
John Blair
Steve Aiken
Preceded by Alex Maskey
Leader of the Democratic Unionist Party
In office
28 May 2021 – 30 June 2021
Deputy Paula Bradley
Preceded by Arlene Foster
Succeeded by Sir Jeffrey Donaldson
Member of the Legislative Assembly
for Lagan Valley
In office
25 June 1998 – 6 March 2022
Preceded by Constituency created
Succeeded by Paul Rankin
Member of the Legislative Assembly
for Belfast South
Assumed office
7 March 2022
Preceded by Christopher Stalford
Member of
Lisburn City Council
In office
21 May 1997 – 5 May 2011
Preceded by Charles Poots
Succeeded by Uel Mackin
Constituency Downshire
Northern Ireland Forum Member
for Lagan Valley
In office
30 May 1996 – 25 April 1998
Preceded by New forum
Succeeded by Forum dissolved
Personal details
Born (1965-05-27) 27 May 1965 (age 60)
Lisburn, Northern Ireland
Nationality British
Political party Speaker (since 2024)
Other political
affiliations		 Democratic Unionist Party (before 2024)
Spouse Glynis Poots
Children 4
Alma mater College of Agriculture
Occupation Farmer
Website Edwin Poots MLA
Gordon Lyons served as Acting Agriculture Minister from 2 February 2021 to 8 March 2021 while Poots temporarily stood aside for health reasons.
Poots announced that he had requested a new leadership contest on 17 June 2021, but remained in office until a successor was elected.

Edwin Poots (born 27 May 1965) is a British politician from Northern Ireland. Since February 2024, he has been the Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly, which is like the chairperson of the local parliament. He was also the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) for a short time in 2021.

Mr. Poots first became a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) in 1998. This means he was elected to represent people in the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Over the years, he has held several important jobs in the Northern Ireland government. In 2007, he became the Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure. Later, he served as Minister of the Environment and then Minister of Health. From 2020 to 2022, he was the Minister of Agriculture, Environment, and Rural Affairs.

In 2021, he was chosen to lead the DUP after Arlene Foster resigned. However, he stepped down from this role just a few weeks later. In 2024, he was elected as the Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Early Life and Family

Edwin Poots grew up in Lisburn, Northern Ireland. He went to Wallace High School and then studied at Greenmount Agricultural College. He works as a farmer. He is married to Glynis Poots and they have four children.

His father, Charles Poots, was also a politician for the DUP. Edwin Poots' son, Luke Poots, was a local councillor for a time.

Political Career

Starting in Local Politics

Before joining the Northern Ireland Assembly, Edwin Poots was a local councillor on Lisburn City Council. This meant he helped make decisions for the local area.

In 1998, he was elected as an MLA to the Northern Ireland Assembly. From 2003 to 2024, he worked on many different committees in the Assembly.

Ministerial Roles

In 2007, he became the Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure. He was in charge of things like museums, art, and sports for Northern Ireland. He held this job until 2008.

In 2009, he became the Minister of the Environment. Then, in 2011, he was given the job of Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety. This was a very important role, looking after health services for everyone. He left this role in 2014.

In 2020, he returned to government as the Minister of Agriculture, Environment, and Rural Affairs. This job involved looking after farming, the environment, and rural areas. He held this position until 2022.

Leading the DUP

In April 2021, Edwin Poots decided to run for leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). He won the election against Sir Jeffrey Donaldson and became the party leader in May 2021.

However, his time as leader was very short. Less than three weeks later, he announced he would step down. He remained in the role until a new leader, Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, was chosen in June 2021.

Assembly Speaker

In February 2024, Edwin Poots was elected as the Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly. The Speaker is like the referee in a debate, making sure everyone follows the rules and that meetings run smoothly.

Edwin Poots, 2013 (cropped)
Poots in 2013

Views and Beliefs

Edwin Poots holds some strong beliefs. He is a young earth creationist, which means he believes the Earth is very young, around 6,000 years old. This view is common in some religious groups.

In 2016, he was criticized for comments he made about the then First Minister, Arlene Foster. He said her most important job was as a "wife, mother and daughter." He defended his comments by saying he felt his most important job was as a "husband, father and son."

In 2020, he was criticized by some politicians for saying that coronavirus was more common in certain areas. The Department of Health later stated that data on infections is not collected based on religious or political groups.

Personal Life

In December 2020, it was reported that Edwin Poots had COVID-19. In January 2021, he shared that he had cancer. He temporarily stepped down from his ministerial role in February 2021 for health reasons but returned to work a few weeks later.

Images for kids

  • Edwin Poots, 2013 (cropped)

    Poots in 2013

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