Gerard Benedict "G.B." Newe,

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

, M.A., D.Litt. (5 February 1907 — 25 October 1982) was a

Northern Irish Northern Irish people is a demonym for all people born in Northern Ireland or people who are entitled to reside in Northern Ireland without any restriction on their period of residence. Most Northern Irish people either identify as Northern ...

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

Unionist politician and prominent Catholic layperson; he was the first

to be appointed a minister in the

Government of Northern Ireland The government of Northern Ireland is, generally speaking, whatever political body exercises political authority over Northern Ireland. A number of separate systems of government exist or have existed in Northern Ireland. Following the partitio ...

Biography

Born at

Cushendall Cushendall (), formerly known as Newtownglens, is a coastal village and townland (of 153 acres) in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is located in the historic barony of Glenarm Lower and the civil parish of Layd, and is part of Causeway Coas ...

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population o ...

, he was the son of gardener Patrick Newe and Catherine McCanny. He attended

St. Malachy's College St Malachy's College, in Belfast, Northern Ireland, is the oldest Catholic diocesan college in Ulster. The college's alumni and students are known as Malachians. History The college, founded by Bishop William Crolly, opened on the feast of Sa ...

. A journalist, Newe edited ''The Ulster Farmer'' from 1931 to 1967.Chris Cook, ''The Routledge Guide to British Political Archives: Sources Since 1945'', Routledge, 2012, , p. 147 He helped to establish the Northern Ireland Council of Social Service and was Secretary of the group from 1948 to 1972. He was also a founder of the cross-community Protestant and Catholic Encounter Group. He was awarded an honorary MA by

Queen's University Belfast , mottoeng = For so much, what shall we give back? , top_free_label = , top_free = , top_free_label1 = , top_free1 = , top_free_label2 = , top_free2 = , established = , closed = , type = Public research university , parent = ...

in 1967.

Political career

Newe served as Minister of State in the Northern Ireland Government from 1971 to 1972. Although not a member of the parliament, he was appointed by

Brian Faulkner Arthur Brian Deane Faulkner, Baron Faulkner of Downpatrick, (18 February 1921 – 3 March 1977), was the sixth and last Prime Minister of Northern Ireland, from March 1971 until his resignation in March 1972. He was also the chief executive ...

as part of an attempt to liberalise the government of Northern Ireland. Newe was the only Catholic to serve as a minister in the original Stormont government. He was appointed to Her Majesty's

Privy Council of Northern Ireland The Privy Council of Northern Ireland is a formal body of advisors to the sovereign and was a vehicle for the monarch's prerogative powers in Northern Ireland. It was modelled on the Privy Council of Ireland. The council was created in 1922 as ...

on 27 October 1971 at Government House, Hillsborough. Long before his appointment, Dr. Newe had made known his view that the Catholic minority in Northern Ireland needed to fully engage with the Northern Ireland Government. In 1958 he condemned the futility of depending on the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...

’s legal claim to the territory of Northern Ireland and encouraged Catholics to co-operate with the Northern government, it being in his own words, “''the authority that controls life and welfare.''"Bardon, Jonathan, ''A History of Ulster'', 1992, p 410

Awards

* Named as OBE

References

External links

Belfast Gazette excerpt

Belfast Gazette excerpt

{{DEFAULTSORT:Newe, G.B. 1907 births 1982 deaths Catholic Unionists Northern Ireland junior government ministers (Parliament of Northern Ireland) Members of the Privy Council of Northern Ireland Roman Catholics from Northern Ireland Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Politicians from Northern Ireland