Basil McCrea
| Basil McCrea MLA |
|
|---|---|
| File:Basil McCrea Lisburn Office047.jpg | |
| Leader of NI21 | |
| Assumed office 6 June 2013 |
|
| Deputy | Vacant |
| Preceded by | Office Created |
| Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly for Lagan Valley |
|
| Assumed office 7 March 2007 |
|
| Preceded by | Billy Bell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 13 November 1959 Ramelton, Republic of Ireland |
| Nationality | Northern Irish |
| Political party | NI21 Independent (2013) Ulster Unionist (before 2013) |
| Alma mater | University of Birmingham University of Ulster |
| Profession | Chemical Engineer |
| Religion | Anglican |
| Website | Official Website |
Basil McCrea, MLA (born 13 November 1959) is a politician who is currently the Leader of NI21 and a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Political career
McCrea unsuccessfully contested the 2005 UK General Election in Lagan Valley for the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP). He was elected in 2007 to the Northern Ireland Assembly as a UUP member for Lagan Valley. He has been a UUP Councillor on Lisburn City Council and was, until his election to the Assembly, a Party officer and spokesman for the Northern Ireland Manufacturers' Focus Group.[1] He has served as a member of the Northern Ireland Policing Board and UUP spokesman on Education. He was formerly a member of the Assembly Committee for the Department for Employment and Learning.
He stood for leader of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) against Tom Elliott in the contest after the UK 2010 General Election. He was widely seen as the candidate of the UUP's "liberal" wing, while Elliott was seen as the candidate of the "conservative" wing. He lost the election by 643 votes to 296. In 2012 McCrea attended a Sinn Fein event on 'uniting Ireland' and said unionism should not be afraid to put its case.[2]
In October 2012, he was one of three unionist assembly members to vote for gay marriage to be introduced in Northern Ireland.[3]
In February 2013, having been subjected to a UUP disciplinary process for publicly opposing a proposal for a "unionist unity" candidate in an impending Parliamentary by-election, McCrea announced that he was resigning from the UUP, stating that he disagreed with the tactic of joint working with the rival Democratic Unionist Party. He has mooted forming a new party with John McCallister, who left the UUP at the same time and over the same issue.[4]
Private life
McCrea was born into an Ulster Scots family in Ramelton, a small town in the north-east of County Donegal, Ireland where he grew up in his very early years.[5] His father carried an Irish passport, although Basil himself carries a British one.[6] He was educated at Belfast Royal Academy (B.R.A.) before attaining a Chemical Engineering degree from the University of Birmingham. He later attained a degree in Advanced Computer Technology from the University of Ulster.
See also
References
- ↑ NIMFG - Northern Ireland Manufacturing Focus Group[dead link]
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ "John McCallister and Basil McCrea resign from the UUP", BBC News, 15 February 2013
- ↑ BBC Radio Ulster "Talkback with William Crawley" radio interview (published on Basil McCrea YouTube channel)
- ↑ BBC Radio Ulster "Talkback with William Crawley" radio interview (published on Basil McCrea YouTube channel)
| Northern Ireland Assembly | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | MLA for Lagan Valley 2007 - |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
| Preceded by | Leader of NI21 2013 - |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
- Articles with dead external links from May 2014
- Use dmy dates from May 2012
- Use British English from May 2012
- Pages with broken file links
- Living people
- NI21 politicians
- Irish politicians
- People from County Donegal
- Ulster Unionist Party politicians
- Northern Ireland MLAs 2007–11
- Northern Ireland MLAs 2011–
- Alumni of Ulster University
- People educated at the Belfast Royal Academy
- 1959 births
- Alumni of the University of Birmingham
