Michael Nesbitt,
MLA (born 11 May 1957) is a British politician and former broadcaster
["'I could see myself getting old with Mike'"](_blank)
Belfast Telegraph, 29 February 2004; accessed 6 February 2009 who was the
Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) from
2012 to 2017 and has been a
Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly
Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs; ga, Comhaltaí den Tionól Reachtach; sco-ulster, Laa-Makkan Forgaitherars) are representatives elected by the voters to the Northern Ireland Assembly.
About
The Northern Ireland Assembly has 90 ...
(MLA) for
Strangford since
2011
File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...
.
Following the
2017 Northern Ireland Assembly election, Nesbitt announced his intention to step down as party leader, which he did on 8 April 2017.
Broadcasting career
Nesbitt worked as a sports reporter at
BBC Northern Ireland
BBC Northern Ireland ( ga, BBC Thuaisceart Éireann; Ulster-Scots: ''BBC Norlin Airlan'') is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Northern Ireland. It is widely available across both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ire ...
and progressed to presenting ''Good Morning Ulster'' on
BBC Radio Ulster
BBC Radio Ulster ( ga, BBC Raidió Uladh) is a Northern Irish radio station owned and operated by BBC Northern Ireland, a division of the BBC. It was established on New Year's Day 1975, replacing what had been an opt-out of BBC Radio 4. It is ...
from 1986 to 1990.
["Nesbitt quits UTV over contracts row"]
Belfast Telegraph, 2 February 2006, accessed 5 April 2009 Nesbitt joined
UTV as a presenter and reporter in 1992, being joined by his wife
Lynda Bryans to co-present evening news programme ''
UTV Live
''UTV Live'' is a British television news service broadcast and produced by UTV.
Overview
The main edition of ''UTV Live'' airs from 18:00 to 18:30 every weeknight, covering the day's news, current affairs and sport from across Northern Irel ...
'' in 1996.
Nesbitt and Bryans also co-presented weekly religious series ''Sunday Morning'' for Anglia Television from 1999 to 2001, and two series of home and garden series ''Home Sweet Home'' for UTV.
Nesbitt also hosted ''Counterpoint''
[Mike Nesbitt's filmography]
BFI Film and TV Database: accessed 5 April 2009 and made a guest appearance in comedy programme ''Everything You Know Is Wrong'' in 1998.
[
In 2006, Nesbitt announced he was not renewing his presenting contract with UTV.][ His final edition of ''UTV Live'' was broadcast on 10 February 2006.
]
Political career
In January 2008, Nesbitt was announced as a Commissioner of Victims and Survivors, a Northern Ireland Assembly
sco-ulster, Norlin Airlan Assemblie
, legislature = 7th Northern Ireland Assembly, Seventh Assembly
, coa_pic = File:NI_Assembly.svg
, coa_res = 250px
, house_type = Unicameralism, Unicameral
, hou ...
role designed to promote the interests of victims of the Troubles
The Troubles ( ga, Na Trioblóidí) were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it is sometimes described as an " ...
.
Nesbitt resigned from the post on 17 February 2010 to become the parliamentary candidate for the Ulster Conservatives and Unionists – New Force in the constituency of Strangford. He lost out to the Democratic Unionist Party's Jim Shannon
Richard James Shannon (born 25 March 1955) is a Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) politician in Northern Ireland. He has sat in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom since 2010 as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Strangford. He had prev ...
in the election.
In the 2011 Northern Ireland Assembly election, Nesbitt was elected as one of six MLAs representing Strangford.
Nesbitt has been the UUP representative on the NI Policing Board since July 2020.
UUP party leader
Mike Nesbitt was elected as UUP party leader on 31 March 2012. He defeated South Down assembly member John McCallister with a final vote tally of 536 votes to 129. Nesbitt said he wanted the UUP to become "the party of choice for every pro-union voter in Northern Ireland".
In April 2012, Nesbitt announced that he wanted to make history by being the first leader of his party to attend a Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur G ...
ard fheis. He said: "We should be going to all the conferences of the main parties, not just the Conservatives
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
, Labour
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
and Liberal Democrats."
Shortly after his election, Nesbitt received attention when he criticised the Alliance Party, a rival party of the UUP. He called them "unprincipled and driven by self-interest" and said they presided over "a catalogue of disasters". He challenged their commitment to its core policy of a shared future, saying "I can only imagine the disappointment of Alliance voters hoping for a principled stance on a shared future." An Alliance spokesman retorted, saying "In last year's election the public showed growing support for the Alliance Party. These criticisms come from a newly elected leader with little experience who leads a party that is in decline at a time when Alliance is in the ascendant. We will not, therefore, be responding to these silly remarks."
Nesbitt has tried to present a unionism which is more accommodating to aspects of Irish culture
The culture of Ireland includes language, literature, music, art, folklore, cuisine, and sport associated with Ireland and the Irish people. For most of its recorded history, Irish culture has been primarily Gaelic (see Gaelic Ireland). It has ...
; for example he visited the Gaeltacht Quarter on the Falls Road, Belfast
The Falls Road () is the main road through West Belfast, Northern Ireland, running from Divis Street in Belfast City Centre to Andersonstown in the suburbs. The name has been synonymous for at least a century and a half with the Catholic com ...
as the first step in trying to overturn the perception of some that his party is hostile to the Irish language
Irish ( Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was ...
.
Following the 2017 election, Nesbitt announced his intention to step down as party leader.
Nesbitt is regarded as one of the more liberal unionists, he had previously stated his opposition to same-sex marriage, but spoke in favour in 2017. His appeal to change the hands of leadership 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 ...
with the Social Democratic and Labour Party
The Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) ( ga, Páirtí Sóisialta Daonlathach an Lucht Oibre) is a social-democratic and Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. The SDLP currently has eight members in the Northern Ireland ...
and Alliance Party fell on the deaf ears of 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 ...
society in which the Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur G ...
claimed an increased victory over the opposing parties. He has been compared to reforming and liberal Ulster Unionist Party
The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded in 1905, emerging from the Irish Unionist Alliance in Ulster. Under Edward Carson, it led unionist opposition to the Irish Home Rule m ...
Prime Minister of Northern Ireland
The prime minister of Northern Ireland was the head of the Government of Northern Ireland between 1921 and 1972. No such office was provided for in the Government of Ireland Act 1920; however, the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, as with governo ...
Terence O'Neill
Terence Marne O'Neill, Baron O'Neill of the Maine, PC (NI) (10 September 1914 – 12 June 1990), was the fourth prime minister of Northern Ireland and leader (1963–1969) of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP). A moderate unionist, who sought ...
by some historians and politicians.
Personal life
Nesbitt was 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 Kingdo ...
.[Mike Nesbitt's profile on u.tv]
WebArchive.org: captured 11 July 2002; accessed 5 April 2009 He attended Campbell College, Belfast and studied at Jesus College, Cambridge
Jesus College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's full name is The College of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint John the Evangelist and the glorious Virgin Saint Radegund, near Cambridge. Its common name comes fr ...
.[
Since giving up broadcasting, Nesbitt and his wife set up their own independent media services company. Nesbitt worked for a public relations company between his careers at BBC Northern Ireland and UTV.][ In April 2010, Nesbitt revealed that he had 2 daughters from a previous marriage with whom he has had no contact since his divorce from their mother.
Nesbitt has four children.][
Nesbitt is one of two leaders of the UUP not to be a member of the Orange Order, the other being Steve Aiken, who led the Party from 2019 to 2021.
"Kennedy still minister after Nesbitt shake up"]
The Newsletter 4 April 2012
References
External links
Mike Nesbitt – Strangford election website
Mike Nesbitt and Lynda Bryans' media services website
Northern Ireland Assembly profile
Ulster Unionist Party profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nesbitt, Mike
1957 births
Living people
Television presenters from Northern Ireland
Journalists from Northern Ireland
Mass media people from Belfast
Politicians from Belfast
UTV (TV channel)
Ulster Unionist Party MLAs
Northern Ireland MLAs 2011–2016
Alumni of Jesus College, Cambridge
Northern Ireland MLAs 2016–2017
Presbyterians from Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland MLAs 2017–2022
Northern Ireland MLAs 2022–2027