John Dobson is a former solicitor

Solicitor

Solicitors are lawyers who traditionally deal with any legal matter including conducting proceedings in courts. In the United Kingdom, a few Australian states and the Republic of Ireland, the legal profession is split between solicitors and barristers , and a lawyer will usually only hold one title...

 and unionist politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

 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...

.

Born in Lurgan

Lurgan

Lurgan is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town is near the southern shore of Lough Neagh and in the north-eastern corner of the county. Part of the Craigavon Borough Council area, Lurgan is about 18 miles south-west of Belfast and is linked to the city by both the M1 motorway...

, Dobson studied at Lurgan College

Lurgan College

Lurgan College is a selective age 14-19 grammar school situated in the town of Lurgan, County Armagh, Northern Ireland.- History :As befitted a growing industrial town, Lurgan had a strong educational establishment from the mid 19th Century. The opening of the Model School in 1863 had been the...

 and Trinity College Dublin. He joined 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...

 and was elected to Banbridge

Banbridge

Banbridge is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies on the River Bann and the A1 road. It was named after a bridge built over the Bann in 1712. The town grew as a coaching stop on the road from Belfast to Dublin and thrived from Irish linen manufacturing...

 Urban District Council in 1961, serving until 1967. In 1965, he was elected to the Northern Ireland House of Commons, representing West Down

West Down (Northern Ireland Parliament constituency)

West Down was a constituency of the Parliament of Northern Ireland.-Boundaries:West Down was a county constituency comprising part of western County Down. It was created when the House of Commons Act 1929 introduced first-past-the-post elections throughout Northern Ireland...

. From 1968 he served as Chairman of the backbench grouping, the 66 Committee, standing down the following year, when he was appointed Minister and Leader of the House of Commons

Minister and Leader of the House of Commons

The Minister and Leader of the House of Commons was a Cabinet post in the Parliament of Northern Ireland which governed Northern Ireland from 1921 to 1972. The position was established in 1966...

, a post he held until 1971.