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Desmond Boal (born 1929) is a former Northern Irish Unionist politician.
Boal had a legal career before he entered politics in 1960. He was the Unionist member of the Northern Ireland Parliament for the
ShankillShankill can mean:* Belfast Shankill * Belfast Shankill , the 1918–1922 UK Parliament constituency* Shankill, County Antrim, a parish in County Antrim, Northern Ireland...
constituency between 1960 and 1972. He was very critical of the leadership under Captain
Terence O'NeillTerence Marne O'Neill, Baron O'Neill of the Maine, PC was the fourth Prime Minister of Northern Ireland.-Background:Terence O'Neill was born on the 10 September 1914 at 29 Ennismore Gardens, Hyde Park, London...
, then
Prime Minister of Northern IrelandThe Prime Minister of Northern Ireland was the de facto head of the Government of Northern Ireland. No such office was provided for in the Government of Ireland Act 1920. However the Lord Lieutenant, as with Governors-General in other Westminster Systems such as in Canada, chose to appoint someone...
. Desmond Boal was against O'Neill's attempt at improve relations with both the
Irish governmentThe Government of Ireland is the cabinet that exercises executive authority in Ireland. The Government is headed by a prime minister called the Taoiseach, and a deputy prime minister called the Tánaiste. The Taoiseach is appointed by the President after being designated by Dáil Éireann...
and with the minority Catholic community in
Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland is a part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and it is situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
along with many backbenchers. He was very prominent in the campaign to bring the fall of O'Neill in April 1969. He was not content with
James Chichester-ClarkJames Dawson Chichester-Clark, Baron Moyola, PC, DL was the penultimate Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and eighth leader of the Ulster Unionist Party between 1969 and March 1971. He was Member of the Northern Ireland Parliament for South Londonderry for 12 years beginning at the by-election...
and
Brian FaulknerArthur Brian Deane Faulkner, Baron Faulkner of Downpatrick, PC was the sixth and last Prime Minister of Northern Ireland from March 1971 until his resignation in March 1972...
who came to Government after O'Neill. Boal resigned from the Unionist Party in 1971 and joined
Ian PaisleyRev Dr Ian Richard Kyle Paisley is a veteran politician and church minister in Northern Ireland. As the then leader of the Democratic Unionist Party , the largest single grouping in the 2007 elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly, he was elected First Minister with Sinn Féin's Martin...
, in establishing the
Democratic Unionist PartyThe 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) in order to provide dissident Unionist opinion with a viable political alternative. He worked as the first Chairman and one of the first public representatives of the DUP and continued to sit in Stormont during the years of 1971-1972. However he had a disagreement with Ian Paisley and resigned from the DUP in 1974 although he remained on friendly terms with Paisley. Although he had a keen interest in politics he did not continue with a political career again.