Douglas Bowman McIldoon (born 13 September 1945) is a former political activist and civil servant in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

. Born in

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

, McIldoon studied at

Methodist College Belfast God with us , established = 1865 , type = Voluntary grammar , religion = Interdenominational , principal = Jenny Lendrum , chair_label = Chairwoman , chair = Revd. Dr Janet Unsworth , founder ...

Queen's College, Oxford The Queen's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford, England. The college was founded in 1341 by Robert de Eglesfield in honour of Philippa of Hainault. It is distinguished by its predominantly neoclassical architecture, ...

and the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) is a public university, public research university located in London, England and a constituent college of the federal University of London. Founded in 1895 by Fabian Society members Sidn ...

. From 1967 to 1969, he undertook research at the Oxford Centre for Management Studies. An activist in the

Northern Ireland Labour Party The Northern Ireland Labour Party (NILP) was a political party in Northern Ireland which operated from 1924 until 1987. Origins The roots of the NILP can be traced back to the formation of the Belfast Labour Party in 1892. William Walker stoo ...

(NILP), he was appointed Party Secretary in 1969, and held the post through the 1970s. As the NILP lost members, McIldoon focused on his career at the

Department of the Environment An environmental ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for the environment and/or natural resources. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of the Environment, ...

. For three years from 1990, he was seconded to the

European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...

. In 1995, he was appointed head of The Utility Regulator in Northern Ireland, a role in which he adopted a high profile and was credited by the '' Belfast Telegraph'' with achieving lower prices for electricity users. He retired in the 2000s, but was commissioned to produce a report on Northern Irish energy prices in 2008. When the British Labour Party began admitting members in Northern Ireland, Holmes joined. However, the party refused to stand any candidates in the region, and in 2016 McIldoon was part of a group which founded the Northern Ireland Labour Representation Committee, a parallel group with the primary purpose of contesting elections, becoming its treasurer.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McIldoon, Douglas 1945 births Living people Alumni of the London School of Economics Alumni of The Queen's College, Oxford People educated at Methodist College Belfast Northern Ireland Labour Party politicians Politicians from Belfast Civil servants from Belfast