John Laird, Baron Laird
Encyclopedia
Professor John Dunn Laird, Baron Laird FRSA of Artigarvan
(born 1944) is an Ulster Unionist life peer
and former chairman of the cross-border Ulster-Scots Agency
.
, after winning the seat of Belfast Saint Anne's in a by-election caused by the death of his father, Dr Norman Laird OBE
.
He was expelled from the Ulster Unionist Parliamentary Party in January 1972 when he voted for a Democratic Unionist Party
censure motion opposing a ban on certain processions planned for The Twelfth
. He topped the poll in Belfast West
in the Northern Ireland Assembly election, 1973
opposed to the proposals of the former Prime Minister
Brian Faulkner
. He repeated this feat as an Ulster Unionist candidate in the 1975 Constitutional Convention election
.
He established John Laird Public Relations in 1976, which, now called JPR, is Northern Ireland's longest established PR company still in existence.
He was created a life peer
in 1999 as Baron Laird, of Artigarvan
in the County of Tyrone
.
Laird studied at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution
and is an energetic supporter of all things instonian.
, Lord Laird wants road signs in Irish, English and Ullans on all roads in Ireland, as "parity of esteem
" as signed up for under the Good Friday Agreement. Similarly, he says that the Garda Síochána
should be renamed to An Garda Síochána/Hannin Polis. Laird served as head of the Ulster-Scots Agency
, before resigning in April 2004, in protest at a cut in government funding for the agency.
Lord Laird found himself at the centre of a minor scandal in 2005, when it was revealed that while chairman of the Ulster-Scots agency, Laird had spent in excess of £2500 of public money on taxis between Belfast and Dublin.
as a crossbencher. Laird has used parliamentary privilege
to speak out against the Irish Republican Army
(IRA) in the House of Lords
. In May 2005 he claimed that Phil Flynn
, an advisor to the Taoiseach
, Bertie Ahern
, was active in the IRA. In December that year he said that there were 200 IRA "sleepers
" in high places in the Republic of Ireland
. In November 2007 he again used parliamentary privilege to name senior IRA members who he said were responsible for the murder of south Armagh
man Paul Quinn in October.
and Donegal South West
on what he termed a radical Ulster-Scots
ticket. He said he intended to use the publicity platform of his candidacy to highlight what he called the double standards of the Irish Government in relation to the Ulster-Scots movement. However, after suffering a mild heart attack he did not stand.
Artigarvan
Artigarvan is a village in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is 3 miles from Strabane and 4 miles from Dunnamanagh, within the Strabane District Council area...
(born 1944) is an Ulster Unionist 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...
and former chairman of the cross-border Ulster-Scots Agency
Ulster-Scots Agency
The Ulster-Scots Agency is a cross-border body in Ireland which seeks "promote the study, conservation and development of Ulster-Scots as a living language; to encourage and develop the full range of its attendant culture; and to promote an understanding of the history of the Ulster-Scots...
.
Career
Whilst Chairman of the Ulster Young Unionist Council in 1970, Laird became the youngest member of the Parliament of Northern IrelandParliament of Northern Ireland
The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which sat from 7 June 1921 to 30 March 1972, when it was suspended...
, after winning the seat of Belfast Saint Anne's in a by-election caused by the death of his father, Dr Norman Laird OBE
Norman Laird
Norman Laird was a doctor and unionist politician in Northern Ireland.Laird studied at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution and the Queen's University of Belfast. He became a doctor and joined the Ulster Unionist Party , and chaired its St Anne's branch from 1948 until 1969...
.
He was expelled from the Ulster Unionist Parliamentary Party in January 1972 when he voted for a 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...
censure motion opposing a ban on certain processions planned for The Twelfth
The Twelfth
The Twelfth is a yearly Protestant celebration held on 12 July. It originated in Ireland during the 18th century. It celebrates the Glorious Revolution and victory of Protestant king William of Orange over Catholic king James II at the Battle of the Boyne...
. He topped the poll in Belfast West
Belfast West (Assembly constituency)
Belfast West 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...
in the Northern Ireland Assembly election, 1973
Northern Ireland Assembly election, 1973
-Seats summary:-Source:* http://www.ark.ac.uk/elections/fa73.htm...
opposed to the proposals of the former Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Northern Ireland
The 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...
Brian Faulkner
Brian Faulkner
Arthur 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...
. He repeated this feat as an Ulster Unionist candidate in the 1975 Constitutional Convention election
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....
.
He established John Laird Public Relations in 1976, which, now called JPR, is Northern Ireland's longest established PR company still in existence.
He was created 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...
in 1999 as Baron Laird, of Artigarvan
Artigarvan
Artigarvan is a village in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is 3 miles from Strabane and 4 miles from Dunnamanagh, within the Strabane District Council area...
in the County of Tyrone
County Tyrone
Historically Tyrone stretched as far north as Lough Foyle, and comprised part of modern day County Londonderry east of the River Foyle. The majority of County Londonderry was carved out of Tyrone between 1610-1620 when that land went to the Guilds of London to set up profit making schemes based on...
.
Laird studied at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution
Royal Belfast Academical Institution
The Royal Belfast Academical Institution, is a Grammar School in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Locally referred to as Inst, the school educates boys from ages 11–18...
and is an energetic supporter of all things instonian.
Publications
The following is a list of books, plays, and films for which Lord John Laird has been responsible:- Videos Trolleybus Days in Belfast (1992)
- Swansong of Steam in Ulster (1993)
- Waterloo Sunset (1994)
- Rails on the Isle of Wight (1994)
- The Twilight of Steam in Ulster (1994)
- A Struggle to be Heard — by a True Ulster Liberal (2010)
Ulster Scots
A proponent of Ulster Scots as a languageLanguage
Language may refer either to the specifically human capacity for acquiring and using complex systems of communication, or to a specific instance of such a system of complex communication...
, Lord Laird wants road signs in Irish, English and Ullans on all roads in Ireland, as "parity of esteem
Parity of esteem
"Parity of esteem" is a phrase used in political philosophy to explain a theory to overcome inter-communal conflict. Promoters of the theory argue that "parity of esteem" "offers a language for negotiation of a post-conflict equilibrium." This negotiation begins with the communities recognising the...
" as signed up for under the Good Friday Agreement. Similarly, he says that the Garda Síochána
Garda Síochána
, more commonly referred to as the Gardaí , is the police force of Ireland. The service is headed by the Commissioner who is appointed by the Irish Government. Its headquarters are located in the Phoenix Park in Dublin.- Terminology :...
should be renamed to An Garda Síochána/Hannin Polis. Laird served as head of the Ulster-Scots Agency
Ulster-Scots Agency
The Ulster-Scots Agency is a cross-border body in Ireland which seeks "promote the study, conservation and development of Ulster-Scots as a living language; to encourage and develop the full range of its attendant culture; and to promote an understanding of the history of the Ulster-Scots...
, before resigning in April 2004, in protest at a cut in government funding for the agency.
Lord Laird found himself at the centre of a minor scandal in 2005, when it was revealed that while chairman of the Ulster-Scots agency, Laird had spent in excess of £2500 of public money on taxis between Belfast and Dublin.
House of Lords
Laird sits in the House of LordsHouse 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 crossbencher. Laird has used parliamentary privilege
Parliamentary privilege
Parliamentary privilege is a legal immunity enjoyed by members of certain legislatures, in which legislators are granted protection against civil or criminal liability for actions done or statements made related to one's duties as a legislator. It is common in countries whose constitutions are...
to speak out against the 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...
(IRA) 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....
. In May 2005 he claimed that Phil Flynn
Phil Flynn
Philip "Phil" Flynn is an Irish businessman. He was previously a vice-president of Sinn Féin, a trade unionist, an industrial relations consultant, a government advisor and a financier...
, an advisor to the 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...
, Bertie Ahern
Bertie Ahern
Patrick Bartholomew "Bertie" Ahern is a former Irish politician who served as Taoiseach of Ireland from 26 June 1997 to 7 May 2008....
, was active in the IRA. In December that year he said that there were 200 IRA "sleepers
Sleeper agent
A sleeper agent is a spy who is placed in a target country or organization, not to undertake an immediate mission, but rather to act as a potential asset if activated...
" in high places in the Republic of Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
. In November 2007 he again used parliamentary privilege to name senior IRA members who he said were responsible for the murder of south 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...
man Paul Quinn in October.
Expenses
Laird claimed parliamentary expenses of £73,000 in 2008/09, making him the most expensive peer in the House of Lords for that parliamentary year.2007 election: Donegal
In December 2006 Laird announced plans to stand in Donegal North EastDonegal North East (Dáil Éireann constituency)
Donegal North–East is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency elects 3 deputies...
and Donegal South West
Donegal South West (Dáil Éireann constituency)
Donegal South–West is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency elects 3 deputies...
on what he termed a radical Ulster-Scots
Ulster-Scots
The Ulster Scots are an ethnic group in Ireland, descended from Lowland Scots and English from the border of those two countries, many from the "Border Reivers" culture...
ticket. He said he intended to use the publicity platform of his candidacy to highlight what he called the double standards of the Irish Government in relation to the Ulster-Scots movement. However, after suffering a mild heart attack he did not stand.
External links
- Lord Laird website
- John Laird, Crossbencher Stratagem
- Ulster's 'Braveheart' on rebel hunt, Interview with the Sunday TribuneSunday TribuneThe Sunday Tribune was an Irish Sunday broadsheet newspaper published by Tribune Newspapers plc. It was edited in its final years by Nóirín Hegarty, who changed both the tone and the physical format of the newspaper from broadsheet to tabloid. Former editors include Conor Brady, Vincent Browne,...
, 22 January 2006 (Newshound) - Debrett's Limited
- http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld201011/ldhansrd/ldallfiles/peers/lord_hansard_1388_wad.html Parliamentary answers 2010/11.