David Trimble
Encyclopedia
William David Trimble, Baron Trimble, PC (born 15 October 1944, in Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...

), is a politician from Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

. He served as Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party
Ulster Unionist Party
The Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland...

 (UUP; 1995–2005), was the first First Minister of Northern Ireland (1998–2002), and was a Member of the British Parliament (1990–2005). He is currently a life peer
Life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as...

 for the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...

. Trimble was awarded the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize
Nobel Peace Prize
The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...

, along with John Hume
John Hume
John Hume is a former Irish politician from Derry, Northern Ireland. He was a founding member of the Social Democratic and Labour Party, and was co-recipient of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize, with David Trimble....

.

While a professor of law at Queen's University Belfast, he was elected to the Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention. He served as Member of Parliament for Upper Bann
Upper Bann (UK Parliament constituency)
Upper Bann is a Parliamentary Constituency in the United Kingdom House of Commons. The current Member of Parliament for Upper Bann is David Simpson.-Boundaries:...

 from 1990 until 2005. He resigned leadership of the UUP soon afterwards. In June 2006, he became a member of the House of Lords, as The Right Honourable William David Trimble by the name, style, and title of Baron Trimble, of Lisnagarvey in the County of Antrim
County Antrim
County Antrim is one of six counties that form Northern Ireland, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of 2,844 km², with a population of approximately 616,000...

. In April 2007 he left the UUP to join the Conservative Party.

In June 2010, the Israeli government appointed Lord Trimble to be one of two international observers serving on an Israeli commission of inquiry looking into the events surrounding an Israeli raid on the Mavi Marmara
Gaza flotilla raid
The Gaza flotilla raid was a military operation by Israel against six ships of the "Gaza Freedom Flotilla" on 31 May 2010 in international waters of the Mediterranean Sea...

, along with Canadian former Judge Advocate General
Judge Advocate General (Canada)
The Office of the Judge Advocate General for the Canadian Forces provides legal advice to commanders at bases and wings, provides lawyers who defend accused persons at courts martial, teaches courses to other CF members or advises a commanding officer in an operational theatre to uphold the ethical...

 Ken Watkin
Ken Watkin
Brigadier General Kenneth "Ken" Watkin, OMM, CD, QC was Judge Advocate General of the Canadian Forces from 2006 to 2010. He is an expert on military law....

. The panel concluded both Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza and the interception of the flotilla “were found to be legally pursuant to the rules of international law”.

Early life and education

Trimble is the son of William and Ivy Trimble, and grew up in a lower-middle class Presbyterian home in Bangor
Bangor, County Down
Bangor is a large town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is a seaside resort on the southern side of Belfast Lough and within the Belfast Metropolitan Area. Bangor Marina is one of the largest in Ireland, and holds Blue Flag status...

 on the County Down
County Down
-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...

 coast. He was educated at Bangor Grammar School
Bangor Grammar School
Bangor Grammar School , is an all-boys, voluntary grammar school situated in Bangor, County Down, Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1856 by the Conservative politician and Bangor man, Col The Hon. Robert Ward PC MP who lived at Castle Ward...

 in Bangor, County Down
Bangor, County Down
Bangor is a large town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is a seaside resort on the southern side of Belfast Lough and within the Belfast Metropolitan Area. Bangor Marina is one of the largest in Ireland, and holds Blue Flag status...

 (1956–63).

He then studied at Queen's University of Belfast
Queen's University of Belfast
Queen's University Belfast is a public research university in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The university's official title, per its charter, is the Queen's University of Belfast. It is often referred to simply as Queen's, or by the abbreviation QUB...

 (QUB) from 1964 through 1968, winning the McKane Medal for Jurisprudence. There he received a first class honours degree (the first at Queens in three years), becoming a Bachelor of Laws
Bachelor of Laws
The Bachelor of Laws is an undergraduate, or bachelor, degree in law originating in England and offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree...

 (LL.B).

Academic career

Trimble qualified as a barrister in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

 in 1969. He began that year as a Queen's University of Belfast lecturer, subsequently becoming Assistant Dean of the Faculty of Law from 1973–75, a Senior Lecturer in 1977, and Head of the Department of Commercial and Property Law from 1981 through 1989. In 1990, after becoming a member of Parliament, he resigned from the university.

In 1983, as he sat in his office at the university, he heard gunshots which turned out to be those of IRA killers of Edgar Graham
Edgar Graham
Edgar Samuel David Graham, MPA, BL , was an Ulster Unionist Party politician and academic from Northern Ireland. He was perceived as a rising star of both legal studies and Unionism until he was killed on 7 December 1983 by the Provisional Irish Republican Army .-Career:A graduate of the Queen's...

, a friend and fellow law professor of his. He was asked to identify the body. In 1994 he himself was targeted for assassination.

Political career

Trimble became involved with the right-wing, paramilitary-linked Vanguard Progressive Unionist Party
Vanguard Progressive Unionist Party
The Vanguard Unionist Progressive Party , informally known as Ulster Vanguard, was a unionist political party which existed in Northern Ireland between 1973 and 1978...

 (known as Vanguard) in the early 1970s. He ran unsuccessfully for the party in the 1973 Assembly election
Northern Ireland Assembly election, 1973
-Seats summary:-Source:* http://www.ark.ac.uk/elections/fa73.htm...

 for North Down
North Down (Assembly constituency)
North Down is a constituency in the Northern Ireland Assembly.The seat was first used for a Northern Ireland-only election for the Northern Ireland Assembly, 1973...

, coming in last. In 1974, he was a legal adviser to the Ulster Workers' Council during the successful UWC strike
Ulster Workers' Council Strike
The Ulster Workers' Council strike was a general strike that took place in Northern Ireland between 15 May and 28 May 1974, during "The Troubles". The strike was called by loyalists and unionists who were against the Sunningdale Agreement, which had been signed in December 1973...

 against the Sunningdale Agreement
Sunningdale Agreement
The Sunningdale Agreement was an attempt to establish a power-sharing Northern Ireland Executive and a cross-border Council of Ireland. The Agreement was signed at the Civil Service College in Sunningdale Park located in Sunningdale, Berkshire, on 9 December 1973.Unionist opposition, violence and...

.

He was elected to the Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention
Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention
The Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention was an elected body set up in 1975 by the UK Labour government of Harold Wilson as an attempt to deal with constitutional issues surrounding the status of Northern Ireland....

 in 1975 as a Vanguard member for Belfast South
Belfast South (UK Parliament constituency)
Belfast South is a Parliamentary Constituency in the United Kingdom House of Commons.-Boundaries:The seat was created in 1922 when, as part of the establishment of the devolved Stormont Parliament for Northern Ireland, the number of MPs in the Westminster Parliament was drastically cut...

, and for a time he served as the party's joint deputy leader, along with the Ulster Defence Association
Ulster Defence Association
The Ulster Defence Association is the largest although not the deadliest loyalist paramilitary and vigilante group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in September 1971 and undertook a campaign of almost twenty-four years during "The Troubles"...

's Glenn Barr
Glenn Barr
Glenn Barr, OBE , is a former politician from Derry, Northern Ireland who was an advocate of Ulster nationalism. For a time during the 1970s he straddled both Unionism and Loyalism due to simultaneously holding important positions in the Vanguard Progressive Unionist Party and the Ulster Defence...

. The party had been established by Bill Craig to oppose sharing power with Irish Nationalists, and to prevent closer ties with the Republic of Ireland; however Trimble was one of those to back Craig when the party split over Craig's proposal to allow voluntary power sharing with the SDLP.

He joined the mainstream established Ulster Unionist Party
Ulster Unionist Party
The Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland...

 (UUP) in 1978 after Vanguard disbanded, and was elected one of the four party secretaries. He was Vice Chairman of Lagan Valley
Lagan Valley
Lagan Valley is an area of Northern Ireland between Belfast and Lisburn. The Lagan is a famous river that flows into Belfast Lough. For a section, the river forms part of the border between the counties of Antrim and Down....

 Unionist Association in 1983 through 1985, and became Chairman in 1985. In 1989 through 1995, he was Chairman of the UUP Legal Committee, and in 1990 through 1996, he was Honorary Secretary of the Ulster Unionist Council.

He was elected to Parliament with 58% of the vote in a by-election in Upper Bann in 1990
Upper Bann by-election, 1990
The 1990 by-election in Upper Bann was caused by the death of the sitting Ulster Unionist Party Member of Parliament Harold McCusker on February 2, 1990....

. He was one of the few British politicians who urged support for the Islamic government of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...

 during the civil war in the 1990s.

Leadership of Ulster Unionist Party

In September 1995 Trimble was unexpectedly elected Leader of the UUP
Ulster Unionist Party leadership election, September 1995
The September 1995 Ulster Unionist Party leadership election began on 28 August 1995 when James Molyneaux resigned as leader of the Ulster Unionist Party following a year of political setbacks for his party. Lee Renyolds, a Young Unionist had contested the leadership at the Ulster Unionist Council...

, the largest party in Northern Ireland and the voice of mainstream unionism, defeating the front-runner John Taylor
John Taylor, Baron Kilclooney
John David Taylor, Baron Kilclooney, PC , is a former Ulster Unionist Party MP and a life peer. He was deputy leader of the UUP from 1995 to 2001, and a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly.-Career and family:...

 and three other candidates.
Trimble's election as party leader came in the aftermath of his role in the Drumcree conflict
Drumcree conflict
The Drumcree conflict or Drumcree standoff is an ongoing dispute over a yearly parade in the town of Portadown, Northern Ireland. The dispute is between the Orange Order and local residents. The residents are currently represented by the Garvaghy Road Residents Coalition ; before 1995 they were...

, in which he led a controversial 1995 Orange Order
Orange Institution
The Orange Institution is a Protestant fraternal organisation based mainly in Northern Ireland and Scotland, though it has lodges throughout the Commonwealth and United States. The Institution was founded in 1796 near the village of Loughgall in County Armagh, Ireland...

 Protestant march, amidst Nationalist protest, down the predominantly Roman Catholic Nationalist Garvaghy Road in Portadown
Portadown
Portadown is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town sits on the River Bann in the north of the county, about 23 miles south-west of Belfast...

, County Armagh
County Armagh
-History:Ancient Armagh was the territory of the Ulaid before the fourth century AD. It was ruled by the Red Branch, whose capital was Emain Macha near Armagh. The site, and subsequently the city, were named after the goddess Macha...

. Trimble and Democratic Unionist Party
Democratic Unionist Party
The Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the...

 (DUP) leader Ian Paisley
Ian Paisley
Ian Richard Kyle Paisley, Baron Bannside, PC is a politician and church minister in Northern Ireland. As the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party , he and Sinn Féin's Martin McGuinness were elected First Minister and deputy First Minister respectively on 8 May 2007.In addition to co-founding...

 walked hand-in-hand as the march, banned since 1997, proceeded down the road. Irish Catholics viewed it as insensitive; Protestants viewed it as Trimble sticking up for them.

Trimble shortly after his election became the first unionist leader in 30 years to meet with a Taoiseach
Taoiseach
The Taoiseach is the head of government or prime minister of Ireland. The Taoiseach is appointed by the President upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas , and must, in order to remain in office, retain the support of a majority in the Dáil.The current Taoiseach is...

 (prime minister) in Dublin. In 1997, he became the first unionist leader to agree to attend negotiations with Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...

 since the island of Ireland was partitioned in 1922 between Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

, which remained in the United Kingdom, and the quasi-independent Irish Free State
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...

.

Later, in the All Party negotiations, he led the UUP delegation and sat at the table with Sinn Féin, though in the eight months of the negotiations he never spoke directly to their leader, Gerry Adams
Gerry Adams
Gerry Adams is an Irish republican politician and Teachta Dála for the constituency of Louth. From 1983 to 1992 and from 1997 to 2011, he was an abstentionist Westminster Member of Parliament for Belfast West. He is the president of Sinn Féin, the second largest political party in Northern...

. The talks were successful, culminating in the Belfast Agreement
Belfast Agreement
The Good Friday Agreement or Belfast Agreement , sometimes called the Stormont Agreement, was a major political development in the Northern Ireland peace process...

 of 10 April 1998, which resulted in power-sharing with Nationalists. On 22 May 1998, the Agreement was approved by 71% in Northern Ireland.

Trimble was appointed to the Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, usually known simply as the Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the Sovereign in the United Kingdom...

 in the 1998 New Year Honours
New Year Honours
The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, being a civic occasion on the New Year annually in which new members of most Commonwealth Realms honours are named. The awards are presented by the reigning monarch or head of state, currently Queen Elizabeth II...

.

First Minister of Northern Ireland; Nobel Peace Prize

Trimble at first opposed the appointment of former U.S. Senator George J. Mitchell
George J. Mitchell
George John Mitchell, Jr., is the former U.S. Special Envoy for Middle East Peace under the Obama administration. A Democrat, Mitchell was a United States Senator who served as the Senate Majority Leader from 1989 to 1995...

 as the chairman of multi-party talks, but eventually accepted him. The talks resulted in the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement (GFA) of April 1998. Trimble was subsequently seen as instrumental in getting his party to accept the accord. He backed the agreement despite opposition from more than half his parliamentary colleagues, which won him overwhelming support from London, Dublin, and Washington. In a referendum, over 70% of the Northern Ireland electorate endorsed the agreement, and he later won support for his approach from his party’s ruling body.

Trimble was elected on 25 June 1998 as a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly
Northern Ireland Assembly
The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive...

 for Upper Bann. On 1 July 1998 he was elected First Minister of Northern Ireland in the New Northern Ireland Assembly.
In October 1998, Trimble and John Hume
John Hume
John Hume is a former Irish politician from Derry, Northern Ireland. He was a founding member of the Social Democratic and Labour Party, and was co-recipient of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize, with David Trimble....

 were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize
Nobel Peace Prize
The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...

 for their efforts to find a peaceful solution to the conflict in Northern Ireland. The Nobel Institute noted:
As the leader of the traditionally predominant party in Northern Ireland, David Trimble showed great political courage when, at a critical stage of the process, he advocated solutions which led to the [Belfast (Good Friday)] peace agreement.


Arguments over the extent of Provisional Irish Republican Army
Provisional Irish Republican Army
The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...

 decommissioning led to repeated disruptions during Trimble's tenure as First Minister. In particular:
  • The office of First Minister was suspended from 11 February 2000 to 30 May 2000.
  • Trimble resigned as First Minister on 1 July 2001 due to the continuing impasse with regard to the IRA refusing his demands that it decommission its arms, as per the commitments all parties had signed up to in section 7 pt. 3 (page 25) of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement but he was re-elected on 5 November 2001.
  • The Assembly was suspended from 14 October 2002 until 2007 due to accusations of an IRA spy ring being operated there (the so-called Stormontgate
    Stormontgate
    Stormontgate is the name given to the controversy surrounding an alleged Provisional Irish Republican Army spy-ring and intelligence gathering operation based in Stormont, the parliament building of Northern Ireland...

     Affair).

In 1998, Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...

 announced a new judicial inquiry, the Bloody Sunday Inquiry
Bloody Sunday Inquiry
The Bloody Sunday Inquiry, also known as the Saville Inquiry or the Saville Report after its chairman, Lord Saville of Newdigate, was established in 1998 by British Prime Minister Tony Blair after campaigns for a second inquiry by families of those killed and injured in Derry on Bloody Sunday...

, into the killing of 14 unarmed civil rights marchers in Derry in 1972. A previous investigation, the Widgery Tribunal, into the same event had been discredited. During the debate in the House of Commons, Trimble was one of few dissenting voices. He said "I am sorry to have to say to the Prime Minister that I think that the hope expressed by the hon. Member for Foyle (Mr. Hume) that this will be part of the healing process is likely to be misplaced. Opening old wounds like this is likely to do more harm than good. The basic facts of the situation are known and not open to dispute." Reporting in 2010, The Saville Inquiry confirmed that all of the 14 killings and 13 woundings were unjustified.

House of Lords; Conservative Party

At the general elections of 2005
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....

, Trimble was defeated by the Democratic Unionist Party
Democratic Unionist Party
The Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the...

's David Simpson in his bid for re-election to Parliament in Westminster. The Ulster Unionist Party retained only one seat in Parliament (out of 18 in Northern Ireland) after the 2005 general election, and Trimble resigned as Leader of the party on 7 May 2005.

On 11 April 2006, it was announced that Trimble would take a seat in the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....

 as a working life peer
Life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as...

, as an appointed members of the Peerage
Peerage
The Peerage is a legal system of largely hereditary titles in the United Kingdom, which constitute the ranks of British nobility and is part of the British honours system...

 whose title may not be inherited. On 21 May 2006 it was announced that he had chosen the geographical designation Lisnagarvey, the original name for his adopted home town of Lisburn
Lisburn
DemographicsLisburn Urban Area is within Belfast Metropolitan Urban Area and is classified as a Large Town by the . On census day there were 71,465 people living in Lisburn...

. Subsequently, on 2 June 2006, he was created Baron Trimble, of Lisnagarvey in the County of Antrim
County Antrim
County Antrim is one of six counties that form Northern Ireland, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of 2,844 km², with a population of approximately 616,000...

.

On 18 December 2006, he announced that he would be standing down from the Northern Ireland Assembly at the next election.

Trimble was named an Honorary Patron of the University Philosophical Society, Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College, Dublin , formally known as the College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, was founded in 1592 by letters patent from Queen Elizabeth I as the "mother of a university", Extracts from Letters Patent of Elizabeth I, 1592: "...we...found and...

.

On 17 April 2007, Trimble announced he had decided to join the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...

 in order to have greater influence in politics in the United Kingdom. At the same time, however, he stated that he did not intend to campaign against the Ulster Unionist Party, and proposed the idea of a future alliance between the Conservatives and the Ulster Unionists, similar to that which had existed prior to 1974 and the fallout of the Sunningdale Agreement
Sunningdale Agreement
The Sunningdale Agreement was an attempt to establish a power-sharing Northern Ireland Executive and a cross-border Council of Ireland. The Agreement was signed at the Civil Service College in Sunningdale Park located in Sunningdale, Berkshire, on 9 December 1973.Unionist opposition, violence and...

. This idea became reality with the formation of Ulster Conservatives and Unionists - New Force in late 2008. It was reported that if the Conservatives won the 2010 general election, Trimble would receive a "significant" ministerial role, possibly in the Cabinet
Cabinet of the United Kingdom
The Cabinet of the United Kingdom is the collective decision-making body of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom, composed of the Prime Minister and some 22 Cabinet Ministers, the most senior of the government ministers....

. In the event, however, Trimble was not offered any governmental or front bench
Her Majesty's Government frontbench
The frontbench of Her Majesty's Government in the Parliament of the United Kingdom consists of the Cabinet and all other ministers.-Key:-Prime Minister and Cabinet Office:-Foreign relations:-Law and order:-Economy:-Social services:...

 position following the formation of the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government
Cameron Ministry
David Cameron is Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, after being invited by Queen Elizabeth II to form a new government after the resignation as Prime Minister of Gordon Brown on 11 May 2010. Leading a coalition government formed by the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats, the coalition...

.

In May 2010 when the former prime minister of Spain Jose Maria Aznar
José María Aznar
José María Alfredo Aznar López served as the Prime Minister of Spain from 1996 to 2004. He is on the board of directors of News Corporation.-Early life:...

 initiated and launched the "Friends of Israel Initiative
Friends of Israel Initiative
The Friends of Israel Initiative is an international effort, to "seek to counter the attempts to delegitimize the State of Israel and its right to live in peace within safe and defensible borders", initiated and led by former Prime Minister of Spain and People's Party leader José María Aznar in...

," a non-Jewish international project supporting Israel's right to exist, Trimble joined him along with Peru's former president Alejandro Toledo
Alejandro Toledo
Alejandro Celestino Toledo Manrique is a politician who was President of Peru from 2001 to 2006. He was elected in April 2001, defeating former President Alan García...

, Italian philosopher Marcelo Pear, former United States Ambassador to the United Nations John R. Bolton
John R. Bolton
John Robert Bolton is an American lawyer and diplomat who has served in several Republican presidential administrations. He served as the U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations from August 2005 until December 2006 on a recess appointment...

, and British historian Andrew Roberts.

Turkel Commission of Inquiry

On 14 June 2010, he was appointed as an observer to the Israeli special independent public Turkel Commission of Inquiry into the Gaza flotilla raid
Gaza flotilla raid
The Gaza flotilla raid was a military operation by Israel against six ships of the "Gaza Freedom Flotilla" on 31 May 2010 in international waters of the Mediterranean Sea...

.

The Commission investigated whether Israel's actions in preventing the arrival of ships in Gaza were in accordance with international law
International law
Public international law concerns the structure and conduct of sovereign states; analogous entities, such as the Holy See; and intergovernmental organizations. To a lesser degree, international law also may affect multinational corporations and individuals, an impact increasingly evolving beyond...

. It focused among other things on the security considerations for imposing a naval blockade on the Gaza Strip and the conformity of the naval blockade with the rules of international law; the conformity of the actions during the raid to principles of international law; and the actions taken by those who organised and participated in the flotilla, and their identities.

On the Commission were former Israeli Supreme Court Justice, Jacob Turkel
Jacob Turkel
Jacob Turkel is an Israeli judge, and former Supreme Court of Israel Justice.His family immigrated to Israel in 1933 from Vienna, Austria. Turkel served as a judge for 38 years, a decade of that time on the Israeli Supreme Court...

, and former Technion University President, Amos Horev
Amos Horev
Amos Horev is an Israeli former Israeli Defense Forces major-general, Chief of Ordnance and subsequently Quartermaster General and Chief Scientist of the IDF, military expert, nuclear scientist, President of Technion University, and Chairman of Rafael.Horev has served on and headed a number of...

, as well two other members added in July 2010. (Bar Ilan University Professor of International Law Shabtai Rosenne
Shabtai Rosenne
Shabtai Rosenne , formerly known as Sefton Wilfred David Rowson was a Professor of International Law and an Israeli diplomat....

 also served on the Commission from its establishment until his death on 21 September 2010.) In addition, the Commission had two foreign observers, Trimble and former head of the Canadian military's judiciary, Judge Advocate General
Judge Advocate General (Canada)
The Office of the Judge Advocate General for the Canadian Forces provides legal advice to commanders at bases and wings, provides lawyers who defend accused persons at courts martial, teaches courses to other CF members or advises a commanding officer in an operational theatre to uphold the ethical...

, Ken Watkin
Ken Watkin
Brigadier General Kenneth "Ken" Watkin, OMM, CD, QC was Judge Advocate General of the Canadian Forces from 2006 to 2010. He is an expert on military law....

, who took part in hearings and discussions, but did not vote on the final conclusions. The panel, in January 2011, concluded both Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza and the interception of the flotilla “were found to be legally pursuant to the rules of international law”.

Personal life

Trimble's first marriage, to Heather McComb in August 1968, ended in divorce in 1976. There were no children from his first marriage. Trimble married a former student, Daphne Elizabeth (née Orr), in August 1978, and they have two sons and two daughters (Richard, Victoria, Nicholas, and Sarah). Lady Trimble
Daphne Trimble
Daphne Elizabeth Trimble is a Northern Ireland academic and former politician. Having served as a member of the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland, she was appointed as a part-time Commissioner in the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission in 2008, and publicly opposed its proposals for...

 served as a member of the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland
Equality Commission for Northern Ireland
The Equality Commission for Northern Ireland is a non-departmental public body in Northern Ireland established under the Northern Ireland Act 1998...

, and later the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission
Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission
The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission is a non-departmental public body funded through the Northern Ireland Office but operating independently of government as the national human rights institution for Northern Ireland...

, before standing unsuccessfully in the UK Parliamentary election of May 2010 for the UCUNF
Ulster Conservatives and Unionists – New Force
The Ulster Conservatives and Unionists, officially registered as the Ulster Conservatives and Unionists – New Force , is a bipartisan electoral alliance in Northern Ireland between the Ulster Unionist Party and the Northern Ireland branch of the Conservative Party, the latter party also being...

.

Westminster Elections



Northern Ireland Assembly Elections

> > > > > > > > > > > > > >
Northern Ireland Assembly election, 2003
Northern Ireland Assembly election, 2003
The second elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly, which at the time of the elections had been suspended for just over a year, were held on Wednesday 26 November 2003. Six members were elected by Single Transferable Vote from each of Northern Ireland's eighteen Westminster Parliamentary...

Party Candidate 1st Pref Result Count
David Trimble
David Trimble
William David Trimble, Baron Trimble, PC , is a politician from Northern Ireland. He served as Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party , was the first First Minister of Northern Ireland , and was a Member of the British Parliament . He is currently a life peer for the Conservative Party...

9,158 Elected 1
David Simpson 5,933 Elected 5
John O'Dowd
John O'Dowd
John O'Dowd MLA is an Irish Sinn Féin politician. He served as acting deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland from 20 September to 31 October 2011, and is also the current Minister for Education. O'Dowd is a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly for Upper Bann and a councillor on Craigavon...

5,524 Elected 11
Stephen Moutray
Stephen Moutray
Alderman Stephen Moutray MLA is a unionist politician from Northern Ireland. He is a member of the Democratic Unionist Party and is currently Mayor of Craigavon Borough Council....

4,697 Elected 6
Dara O'Hagan
Dara O'Hagan
Dara O'Hagan is a nationalist politician in Northern Ireland. She was elected in 1998 to the Northern Ireland Assembly as a Sinn Féin member for Upper Bann....

3,970 Not elected
Dolores Kelly
Dolores Kelly
Cllr Dolores Kelly is a Social Democratic and Labour Party politician and Member of the Legislative Assembly for Upper Bann.Kelly attended the University of Ulster, Jordanstown....

3,661 Elected 11
Kieran Corr 3,157 Not elected
Sam Gardiner
Sam Gardiner
Alderman Samuel Gardiner MBE JP MLA is a Unionist politician in Northern Ireland for the Ulster Unionist Party who is an MLA for Upper Bann...

2,359 Elected 9
Denis Watson
Denis Watson (politician)
Denis Watson is a former politician in Northern Ireland.Watson worked as a financial consultant and became the Grand Master of the County Armagh Orange Lodge. He was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly in 1998 as an independent Unionist representing Upper Bann...

1,770 Not elected
George Savage
George Savage (politician)
George Savage, is a unionist politician in Northern Ireland. A native of Donacloney, he served in the Northern Ireland Assembly as an Ulster Unionist Party member for Upper Bann from 1998 to 2003 and from 2007-11.-External links:...

1,269 Not elected
David Jones 585 Not elected
Sidney Anderson 581 Not elected
Francis McQuaid 571 Not elected
Tom French
Tom French (politician)
Tom French is a former President of the Workers' Party of Ireland and former member of Craigavon Borough Council.Born in Belfast in 1934, French joined Sinn Féin as a youth and remained with the party as it evolved into the Workers' Party....

247 Not elected

> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >
Northern Ireland Assembly election, 1998
Northern Ireland Assembly election, 1998
-Seats summary:-Details:Although the SDLP won the most first preference votes, the Ulster Unionists won the most seats in the Assembly. This has been attributed to several reasons, including:...

Party Candidate 1st Pref Result Count
David Trimble
David Trimble
William David Trimble, Baron Trimble, PC , is a politician from Northern Ireland. He served as Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party , was the first First Minister of Northern Ireland , and was a Member of the British Parliament . He is currently a life peer for the Conservative Party...

12,338 Elected
Brid Rodgers
Bríd Rodgers
Bríd Rodgers , born Bríd Stratford Bríd Rodgers (Irish: Bríd Mhic Ruairí), born Bríd Stratford Bríd Rodgers (Irish: Bríd Mhic Ruairí), born Bríd Stratford (born 20 February 1935, in Gweedore [Gaoth Dobhair], County Donegal, Ireland, is a former Irish nationalist politician....

9,260 Elected
Denis Watson
Denis Watson (politician)
Denis Watson is a former politician in Northern Ireland.Watson worked as a financial consultant and became the Grand Master of the County Armagh Orange Lodge. He was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly in 1998 as an independent Unionist representing Upper Bann...

4,855 Elected
Dara O'Hagan
Dara O'Hagan
Dara O'Hagan is a nationalist politician in Northern Ireland. She was elected in 1998 to the Northern Ireland Assembly as a Sinn Féin member for Upper Bann....

4,301 Elected
Mervyn Carrick
Mervyn Carrick
William Mervyn Carrick, known as Mervyn Carrick is a former Unionist politician in Northern Ireland.Born in Portadown, Carrick studied at Portadown Technical College before becoming an accountant...

4,177 Elected
Ruth Allen 3,635 Not elected
Francie Murray 2,915 Not elected
Mel Byrne 2,687 Not elected
Francis McQuaid 1,556 Not elected
David Vance 1,405 Not elected
George Savage
George Savage (politician)
George Savage, is a unionist politician in Northern Ireland. A native of Donacloney, he served in the Northern Ireland Assembly as an Ulster Unionist Party member for Upper Bann from 1998 to 2003 and from 2007-11.-External links:...

669 Elected
Mark Neale 455 Not elected
Alan Evans 439 Not elected
Tom French
Tom French (politician)
Tom French is a former President of the Workers' Party of Ireland and former member of Craigavon Borough Council.Born in Belfast in 1934, French joined Sinn Féin as a youth and remained with the party as it evolved into the Workers' Party....

270 Not elected
Kenny McClinton
Kenny McClinton
Kenneth McClinton is a Northern Irish pastor and sometime political activist. During his early years McClinton was an active member of the Ulster Defence Association...

207 Not elected
Brian Silcock 101 Not elected
Jack Lyons 32 Not elected

1996 Forum

Successful candidates are shown in bold.
> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Chambers>
Party Candidate(s) Votes Percentage
David Trimble
David Trimble
William David Trimble, Baron Trimble, PC , is a politician from Northern Ireland. He served as Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party , was the first First Minister of Northern Ireland , and was a Member of the British Parliament . He is currently a life peer for the Conservative Party...


Sam Gardiner
Sam Gardiner
Alderman Samuel Gardiner MBE JP MLA is a Unionist politician in Northern Ireland for the Ulster Unionist Party who is an MLA for Upper Bann...


George Savage
George Savage (politician)
George Savage, is a unionist politician in Northern Ireland. A native of Donacloney, he served in the Northern Ireland Assembly as an Ulster Unionist Party member for Upper Bann from 1998 to 2003 and from 2007-11.-External links:...


John Dobson
Mark Neale
16,592 36.3
Brid Rodgers
Bríd Rodgers
Bríd Rodgers , born Bríd Stratford Bríd Rodgers (Irish: Bríd Mhic Ruairí), born Bríd Stratford Bríd Rodgers (Irish: Bríd Mhic Ruairí), born Bríd Stratford (born 20 February 1935, in Gweedore [Gaoth Dobhair], County Donegal, Ireland, is a former Irish nationalist politician....


Kieran McGeown
Patricia Mallon
Sean McKavanagh
Dolores Kelly
Dolores Kelly
Cllr Dolores Kelly is a Social Democratic and Labour Party politician and Member of the Legislative Assembly for Upper Bann.Kelly attended the University of Ulster, Jordanstown....

9,846 21.5
Mervyn Carrick
Mervyn Carrick
William Mervyn Carrick, known as Mervyn Carrick is a former Unionist politician in Northern Ireland.Born in Portadown, Carrick studied at Portadown Technical College before becoming an accountant...


Frederick Baird
Ruth Allen
7,134 15.6
Michelle O'Connor
Rory Harbinson
Jean Fegan
Christopher Burke
5,620 12.3
William Ramsey
Frank McQuaid
Sean Hagan
2,152 5.7
William Lawrie
Edward Kinner
1,404 3.1
Morrison Woods
Dorothy Boyd
886 1.9
Hugh Casey
Hugh Casey (politician)
Hugh Casey is a former politician in Northern Ireland.Casey worked as a community project manager in Lurgan before being elected to Craigavon Borough Council as a Social Democratic and Labour Party councillor in 1989. In 1994, he left the SDLP, after accepting an MBE, claiming that some in the...


Alan Evans
William White
Mary Sheen
512 1.0
David McCrea
John Hammond
402 0.9
Kate Cochrane
Chris Moffat
Lesley Doyle
390 0.9
Tom French
Tom French (politician)
Tom French is a former President of the Workers' Party of Ireland and former member of Craigavon Borough Council.Born in Belfast in 1934, French joined Sinn Féin as a youth and remained with the party as it evolved into the Workers' Party....


Peter Smith
311 0.7
Edward Kidd
Gary Nelson
180 0.4
Gavin McDowell
Jameshid Fenderesky
Martha Brett
178 0.4
Adrian McKinney
Pearl Snowden
71 0.2
Ciaran McClean
Martin Cullen
36 0.1
John Darby
Rosalind Mulholland
14 0.0
Keith Chambers
William Larmour Jr
4 0.0

Books


Articles

  • "The Belfast Agreement", David Trimble, 22 Fordham International Law Journal
    Fordham International Law Journal
    The Fordham International Law Journal is a student-run law journal associated with the Fordham University School of Law. According to the Washington and Lee journal rankings, it is the 8th most cited student-edited international and comparative law journal in the United States.- History :The...

    1145, 1998–99

See also


External links


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