David Ford
Encyclopedia
David Ford is a politician who is a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly
. Ford has been leader of the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
since 2001 and has been Northern Ireland
Minister of Justice
since April 2010.
and Welsh
parents and grew up in Orpington
, Kent
, England
. Ford was educated at Warren Road Primary School, Orpington and Dulwich College
, London
. He spent summer holidays on his uncle's farm in Gortin
, County Tyrone
, and moved to Northern Ireland permanently in 1969 when he went to study Economics
at Queen's University Belfast. There he joined the university's student Alliance Party grouping. After graduating, Ford took a year out to work as a volunteer at the ecumenical Corrymeela Community
in Ballycastle
, County Antrim
, before starting work as a social worker in 1973.
. He was elected to Antrim Borough Council in 1993, 1997 and - after leaving the Council in 2001 to concentrate on Assembly business - again in 2005.
In 1996, Ford stood unsuccessfully for election to the Northern Ireland Forum
in South Antrim
, but was a key member of Alliance's team to the talks which led to the Good Friday Agreement. In 1997, he obtained 12% of the vote in the British General Election in South Antrim
, and in 1998 was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly in the constituency of the same name
. He fought South Antrim again in the 2000 by-election
and in the 2001
and 2005 general elections
.
resigned from the Party leadership following poor election results. David Ford won the leadership election on 6 October by 86 votes to 45, ahead of Eileen Bell
. Ford was identified with the more Liberal, internationalist wing of Alliance, while Bell was a more traditionalist, bridge-building, candidate. Notably, Ford was also the only Alliance MLA to be also a member of the Liberal Democrats
at the time.
Ford outlined his internationalist view point in his speech at the leadership selection when he said:
Ford gave Alliance a stability which it had lacked since the departure of John Alderdice, but the Party had declined seriously in the late 1990s and all Ford could do was stabilise the situation. Within a month of taking over the leadership, however, Ford had a chance to establish Alliance's relevancy in the post-Good Friday Agreement environment - on 6 November 2001, the Northern Ireland Executive
was to be re-established. However, due to defections within his own Ulster Unionist Party
, First Minister David Trimble
, had insufficient support within the Unionist bloc in the Assembly to be re-elected to his post. Ford and two of his five colleagues re-designated as Unionist, for just 22 minutes, in order to secure Trimble's position, and thereby enabled the devolved institutions to operate for another year. However, Alliance failed to make any political gains from their move, and the UUP
and Sinn Féin
failed to reach agreement on the decommissioning
issue, ensuring that the institutions collapsed again in October 2002.
In the Northern Ireland Assembly Elections of 2003, Ford's seat in the Assembly was perceived to be under severe threat from Sinn Féin's Martin Meehan
, with many commentators expecting him to lose it. However, Ford's expertise in nuts and bolts electioneering stood him in good stead. Although Alliance's vote almost halved, Ford's own vote in South Antrim
increased from 8.6% to 9.1%. Meehan's vote increased dramatically, from 7.3% to 11.5%, and he started the election count ahead. However Ford had much greater transfer appeal and finished 180 votes ahead of Meehan at the end of a dramatic three-way fight for the last two seats, with the SDLP's Thomas Burns just 14 votes ahead of Ford. Despite the dramatic fall in vote, Alliance, almost miraculously, held on to its six seats in the Assembly, which remained suspended.
In 2004, Ford made good his leadership election pledge to work with other parties, as Alliance joined with the Workers' Party
, Northern Ireland Conservatives
and elements of the Northern Ireland Women's Coalition
to support Independent candidate John Gilliland in the European elections, achieving the best result for the centre ground for 25 years.
Ford's greatest triumph came in the 2007 Northern Ireland Assembly election
, when the party achieved its highest vote share since Alderdice's departure and picked up a seat in what was an otherwise poor election for the moderates. Despite media predictions once again of his demise, Ford himself was elected third in South Antrim, with over 13% of the poll. In the 2011 Assembly elections, the Alliance Party managed to increase their vote by 50% gaining an extra seat in East Belfast and surpassing the Ulster Unionist Party in Belfast.
.
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...
. Ford has been leader of the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
The Alliance Party of Northern Ireland is a liberal and nonsectarian political party in Northern Ireland. It is Northern Ireland's fifth-largest party overall, with eight seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly and one in the House of Commons....
since 2001 and has been 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...
Minister of Justice
Department of Justice (Northern Ireland)
The Department of Justice is a devolved Northern Ireland government department in the Northern Ireland Executive. The current Minister of Justice is David Ford, who is a member of the Northern Ireland Executive...
since April 2010.
Early life
Ford was born on 24 February 1951 to Northern IrishNorthern 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...
and Welsh
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
parents and grew up in Orpington
Orpington
Orpington is a suburban town and electoral ward in the London Borough of Bromley. It forms the southeastern edge of London's urban sprawl and is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.-History:...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Ford was educated at Warren Road Primary School, Orpington and Dulwich College
Dulwich College
Dulwich College is an independent school for boys in Dulwich, southeast London, England. The college was founded in 1619 by Edward Alleyn, a successful Elizabethan actor, with the original purpose of educating 12 poor scholars as the foundation of "God's Gift". It currently has about 1,600 boys,...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. He spent summer holidays on his uncle's farm in Gortin
Gortin
Gortin is a village and townland in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is ten miles north of Omagh in the valley of the Owenkillew river, overlooked by the Sperrins. It had a population of 360 at the 2001 Census.-Geography:...
, County Tyrone
Tyrone
The name Tyrone can refer to:*County Tyrone, a county in Northern Ireland, roughly corresponding to the ancient kingdom of Tír Eogain*An Earl of Tyrone*A small steam train which runs between Bushmills and the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland-Places:...
, and moved to Northern Ireland permanently in 1969 when he went to study Economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
at Queen's University Belfast. There he joined the university's student Alliance Party grouping. After graduating, Ford took a year out to work as a volunteer at the ecumenical Corrymeela Community
Corrymeela Community
The Corrymeela Community is a Christian community whose objective is the promotion of reconciliation and peace-building through the healing of social, religious, and political divisions in Northern Ireland...
in Ballycastle
Ballycastle, County Antrim
Ballycastle is a small town in County Antrim in Northern Ireland. Its population was 5,089 people in the 2001 Census. It is the seat and main settlement of Moyle District Council....
, County 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...
, before starting work as a social worker in 1973.
Political career
Ford stood unsuccessfully for Antrim Borough Council in 1989, and entered politics full-time when be became general secretary of the Alliance Party. In that role, he was best known as a strong supporter of the then-leader John Alderdice and an advocate of better political organisation and community politicsCommunity politics
Community politics is a movement in British politics to re-engage people with political action on a local level.Most developed amongst the Liberal Democrats but adopted to some extent by the British Greens, other parties, and Independents....
. He was elected to Antrim Borough Council in 1993, 1997 and - after leaving the Council in 2001 to concentrate on Assembly business - again in 2005.
In 1996, Ford stood unsuccessfully for election to the Northern Ireland Forum
Northern Ireland Forum
The Northern Ireland Forum was a body set up in 1996 as part of a process of negotiations that eventually led to the Belfast Agreement in 1998....
in South Antrim
South Antrim (UK Parliament constituency)
South Antrim is a Parliamentary Constituency in the United Kingdom House of Commons.-Boundaries:From 1885, this constituency was one of four county divisions of the former Antrim constituency...
, but was a key member of Alliance's team to the talks which led to the Good Friday Agreement. In 1997, he obtained 12% of the vote in the British General Election in South Antrim
South Antrim (UK Parliament constituency)
South Antrim is a Parliamentary Constituency in the United Kingdom House of Commons.-Boundaries:From 1885, this constituency was one of four county divisions of the former Antrim constituency...
, and in 1998 was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly in the constituency of the same name
South Antrim (Assembly constituency)
South Antrim 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...
. He fought South Antrim again in the 2000 by-election
South Antrim by-election, 2000
Clifford Forsythe, the Ulster Unionist Member of Parliament for South Antrim, died on April 27, 2000, precipitating a by-election.-Candidates:...
and in the 2001
United Kingdom general election, 2001
The United Kingdom general election, 2001 was held on Thursday 7 June 2001 to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. It was dubbed "the quiet landslide" by the media, as the Labour Party was re-elected with another landslide result and only suffered a net loss of 6 seats...
and 2005 general elections
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....
.
Alliance Party leadership
In 2001, Séan NeesonSéan Neeson
Seán Neeson is a politician in Northern Ireland who served as leader of the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland between 1998 and 2001.- Education and early life :...
resigned from the Party leadership following poor election results. David Ford won the leadership election on 6 October by 86 votes to 45, ahead of Eileen Bell
Eileen Bell
Eileen Bell CBE is a Northern Ireland politician, member of the Northern Ireland Assembly for North Down and former deputy leader of the Alliance Party.-Early life:...
. Ford was identified with the more Liberal, internationalist wing of Alliance, while Bell was a more traditionalist, bridge-building, candidate. Notably, Ford was also the only Alliance MLA to be also a member of the Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
at the time.
Ford outlined his internationalist view point in his speech at the leadership selection when he said:
I am keen to co-operate with other non-sectarian groups in Northern Ireland, including political parties that will stand against the tribal divide. Our links to the South are not as good as they should be, either with the PDs or with Fine Gael, where we have many natural allies.
We must also recognise that Northern Ireland is not unique in the world.
Our stand is not different in substance from those who work for peace and reconciliation in Cyprus, Palestine or Bosnia. We should learn from friends abroad. To suggest that 'our wee province' is unique is to do a disservice. There is little more objectionable than the sight of the political begging bowl being dragged out by sectional politicians.
Ford gave Alliance a stability which it had lacked since the departure of John Alderdice, but the Party had declined seriously in the late 1990s and all Ford could do was stabilise the situation. Within a month of taking over the leadership, however, Ford had a chance to establish Alliance's relevancy in the post-Good Friday Agreement environment - on 6 November 2001, the Northern Ireland Executive
Northern Ireland Executive
The Northern Ireland Executive is the executive arm of the Northern Ireland Assembly, the devolved legislature for Northern Ireland. It is answerable to the Assembly and was established according to the terms of the Northern Ireland Act 1998, which followed the Good Friday Agreement...
was to be re-established. However, due to defections within his own 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...
, First Minister 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...
, had insufficient support within the Unionist bloc in the Assembly to be re-elected to his post. Ford and two of his five colleagues re-designated as Unionist, for just 22 minutes, in order to secure Trimble's position, and thereby enabled the devolved institutions to operate for another year. However, Alliance failed to make any political gains from their move, and the UUP
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...
and 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...
failed to reach agreement on the decommissioning
Decommissioning in Northern Ireland
Decommissioning in Northern Ireland was a process in the Belfast Agreement as part of the Northern Ireland peace process. Under the Belfast Agreement, all paramilitary groups fighting in The Troubles would decommission...
issue, ensuring that the institutions collapsed again in October 2002.
In the Northern Ireland Assembly Elections of 2003, Ford's seat in the Assembly was perceived to be under severe threat from Sinn Féin's Martin Meehan
Martin Meehan (Irish republican)
Martin Meehan was a Sinn Féin politician and former volunteer in the Provisional Irish Republican Army . Meehan was the first person to be convicted of membership of the Provisional IRA, and he spent eighteen years in prison during the Troubles.-Background and IRA activity:Meehan was born in 1945...
, with many commentators expecting him to lose it. However, Ford's expertise in nuts and bolts electioneering stood him in good stead. Although Alliance's vote almost halved, Ford's own vote in South Antrim
South Antrim (Assembly constituency)
South Antrim 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...
increased from 8.6% to 9.1%. Meehan's vote increased dramatically, from 7.3% to 11.5%, and he started the election count ahead. However Ford had much greater transfer appeal and finished 180 votes ahead of Meehan at the end of a dramatic three-way fight for the last two seats, with the SDLP's Thomas Burns just 14 votes ahead of Ford. Despite the dramatic fall in vote, Alliance, almost miraculously, held on to its six seats in the Assembly, which remained suspended.
In 2004, Ford made good his leadership election pledge to work with other parties, as Alliance joined with the Workers' Party
Workers' Party of Ireland
The Workers' Party is a left-wing republican political party in Ireland. Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970 after a split within the party, adopting its current name in 1982....
, Northern Ireland Conservatives
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...
and elements of the Northern Ireland Women's Coalition
Northern Ireland Women's Coalition
The Northern Ireland Women's Coalition was a minor political party in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1996 by Catholic academic Monica McWilliams and Protestant social worker Pearl Sagar to contest the elections to the Northern Ireland Forum, the body for all-party talks which led to the...
to support Independent candidate John Gilliland in the European elections, achieving the best result for the centre ground for 25 years.
Ford's greatest triumph came in the 2007 Northern Ireland Assembly election
Northern Ireland Assembly election, 2007
The third elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly were held on 7 March 2007 when 108 new members were elected. The election saw endorsement of the St Andrews Agreement and the two largest parties, the Democratic Unionist Party and Sinn Féin, along with the Alliance Party, increase their...
, when the party achieved its highest vote share since Alderdice's departure and picked up a seat in what was an otherwise poor election for the moderates. Despite media predictions once again of his demise, Ford himself was elected third in South Antrim, with over 13% of the poll. In the 2011 Assembly elections, the Alliance Party managed to increase their vote by 50% gaining an extra seat in East Belfast and surpassing the Ulster Unionist Party in Belfast.
Northern Ireland Justice Minister
On 12 April 2010, Ford was chosen by the Assembly to become Northern Ireland's first Justice Minister in 38 years. Ford was supported in the Assembly by the DUP, Sinn Féin, the Alliance Party, the Green Party and the Progressive Unionist Party. Separate candidates for the position were put forward by both the Ulster Unionists and the SDLP, being Danny Kennedy and Alban McGuinness respectively.Personal life
David Ford is married to Anne, has four grown-up children and lives in rural County Antrim. He is an elder in the Presbyterian Church in IrelandPresbyterian Church in Ireland
The Presbyterian Church in Ireland , is the largest Presbyterian denomination in Ireland, and the largest Protestant denomination in Northern Ireland...
.