Máirtín Ó Muilleoir
| Máirtín Ó Muilleoir | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly for Belfast South | |
|
Assumed office 22 October 2014 | |
| Preceded by | Alex Maskey |
| 58th Lord Mayor of Belfast | |
|
In office 2 June 2013 – 2 June 2014 | |
| Preceded by | Gavin Robinson |
| Succeeded by | Nichola Mallon |
| Councillor on Belfast City Council | |
|
Assumed office 2011 | |
| Constituency | Balmoral |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Martin Millar 1 January 1959 Belfast, Northern Ireland |
| Nationality | Irish |
| Political party | Sinn Féin |
| Spouse(s) | Helen O'Hare |
| Children | 4 |
| Alma mater | Queen's University Belfast |
| Profession | Publisher |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
Máirtín Ó Muilleoir (born Martin Millar; 1 January 1959 [1]) is an Irish Sinn Féin politician, author, publisher and businessman, who served as the 58th Lord Mayor of Belfast (2013-14).[2] One sibling is writer, blogger and Huffington Post columnist Adrian Millar.[3] and another is journalist and editor Gerry Millar/Gearóid Ó Muilleoir of The Belfast Telegraph.
A graduate of St. Mary's Christian Brothers' Grammar School and Queen's University Belfast,[4] Ó Muilleoir entered politics in 1985, when he stood as a Sinn Féin candidate for the Upper Falls area and narrowly missed out on being elected.[5]
When Pip Glendinning of the Alliance Party resigned her seat two years later due to the birth of the Glendinning's baby daughter, Ó Muilleoir won the resulting by-election in October 1987. During his time on the council, he started a number of legal actions over what he claimed was discrimination by the Unionist-dominated council,[4] detailing these experiences in his book, The Dome of Delight.[2] He was re-elected at the 1989 and 1993 local elections, retiring at the 1997 local elections to concentrate on his business interests.[2]
In 1997, he became part-owner of the Andersonstown News, which subsequently purchased the New York-based Irish Echo.[4] A fluent Irish speaker,[2] he has interests in other Irish and American businesses.[4] He served as a temporary director of Northern Ireland Water.[6]
He re-entered politics in 2011, when he was elected as a Belfast City Councillor for Balmoral, South Belfast, gaining the seat previously held by Jim Kirkpatrick of the Democratic Unionist Party, and was elected Lord Mayor in 2013, serving a one year term.[7]
In 2014, he was co-opted as an MLA into the Northern Ireland Assembly.[8] He stood in Belfast South in the 2015 United Kingdom general election, losing to the Social Democratic and Labour Party incumbent, Alasdair McDonnell.
References
- ↑ Profile, niassembly.gov.uk; accessed 10 February 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 "Máirtín Ó Muilleoir is Belfast's new Lord Mayor". The News Letter. 3 June 2013. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
- ↑ Adrian Millar/Máirtín Ó Muilleoir relation, thewildgeese.irish; accessed 5 June 2015.
- 1 2 3 4 "Máirtín Ó Muilleoir - a republican for change". The Belfast Telegraph. 8 June 2013. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
- ↑ Belfast city council election results 1985-1989, ARK, accessed 21 June 2013
- ↑ "Mairtin O'Muilleoir to represent SF in south Belfast". BBC.co.uk. 6 December 2010. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
- ↑ Balmoral election results, 1993-2011, ARK.ac.uk; accessed 21 June 2013.
- ↑ Profile, belfasttelegraph.co.uk; accessed 17 May 2015.