The Right Honourable  Peter Robinson  MP MLA
Peter Robinson, June 2008
First Minister of Northern Ireland
Incumbent
Assumed office  5 June 2008
Deputy	Martin McGuinness
Preceded by	Ian Paisley
Leader of the Democratic Unionist Party
Incumbent
Assumed office  31 May 2008
Preceded by	Ian Paisley
Minister of Finance and Personnel
In office 8 May 2007 – 5 June 2008
Preceded by	Sean Farren
Succeeded by	Nigel Dodds
Minister for Regional Development
In office 29 November 1999 – 27 July 2000
Preceded by	Newly created position
Succeeded by	Gregory Campbell
Minister for Regional Development
In office 24 October 2001 – 11 October 2002
Preceded by	Gregory Campbell
Succeeded by	Conor Murphy
Member of Parliament for Belfast East
Incumbent
Assumed office  3 May 1979
Preceded by	William Craig
Majority	5877 (19%)
Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly for Belfast East
Incumbent
Assumed office  25 June 1998
Born	29 December 1948 (1948-12-29) (age 60) Belfast, Northern Ireland
Nationality	British
Political party	Democratic Unionist Party
Spouse(s)	Iris Collins
Children	Jonathan Gareth Rebekah
Residence	Belfast, Northern Ireland
Alma mater	Belfast Metropolitan College
Occupation	Politician
Profession	Estate agent
Religion	Elim Pentecostal
Website	www.peterrobinson.org

Peter David Robinson (born 29 December 1948) is a Northern Ireland politician. He has been First Minister of Northern Ireland since 5 June 2008 and leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) since 31 May 2008. He was previously Minister of Finance and Personnel.^[1]

Robinson has been involved in politics in Northern Ireland for much of his adult life. He was elected in 1979 as Member of Parliament (MP) for the Belfast constituency of Belfast East. Following the re-establishment of devolution in Northern Ireland, Robinson was elected in 1998 as Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for the Belfast constituency of Belfast East.

He won the DUP leadership election unopposed on 17 April 2008.^[2] Subsequently he became First Minister on 5 June 2008 following the resignation of First Minister Ian Paisley on 31 May 2008.^[3]

Contents 1 Background 2 Political career 2.1 Member of the DUP 2.2 Member of Parliament and Minister 2.3 Leadership of the Democratic Unionist Party 2.4 First Minister 3 Policies and views 3.1 Description of views 3.2 Voted as MP (examples) 4 Controversies 4.1 Invasion of Clontibret 4.2 Ulster Resistance 4.3 Christian views 5 Satire 6 Personal life 6.1 Religion 6.2 Interests 7 See also 8 References 9 External links 10 Offices held

[edit] Background

Peter Robinson was born in Belfast, the son of David McCrea Robinson and his wife Sheila Robinson. He was educated at Annadale Grammar School (now Wellington College Belfast), a single-sex grammar school in Belfast. Robinson studied at Castlereagh College (now Castlereagh Campus of Belfast Metropolitan College), a further education college in Belfast. Between leaving college and beginning his political career he was an estate agent.

[edit] Political career

[edit] Member of the DUP

Robinson was General Secretary of the DUP between 1975 and 1979. He first stood in the election to the Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention on 1 May 1975 in Belfast, East. Although he started in fifth place, he failed to get elected being overtaken by his running mate Eileen Paisley.^[4]

Robinson was elected as a councillor for Castlereagh Borough Council for the Castlereagh C area in the local government elections on 18 May 1977.^[5]. He resigned from the council on 2 July 2007^[6].

Robinson was selected as DUP candidate for Belfast East during the 1979 general election, a seat which previously had a big Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) majority.^[4] He won the seat with a 19.9%^[4] swing to the DUP and a majority of 64^[4], with Alliance Party leader Oliver Napier 928^[4] votes behind, unseating the MP former Vanguard Progressive Unionist Party leader and UUP candidate William Craig on 3 May 1979 .

[edit] Member of Parliament and Minister

Robinson does not sit on any committees in the United Kingdom Parliament, although served on the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee from 1997 to 13 July 2005^[8]. Along with UUP and DUP MPs Robinson resigned his seat in protest at the Anglo Irish Agreement on 17 December 1985 and was re-elected in the subsequent by-election.

He was re-elected to the House of Commons in 1983, 1986, 1987, 1992, 1997, 2001 and 2005. In the general election on 7 June 2001, Robinson’s wife, Iris, joined him in Parliament as MP for Strangford. The Robinsons are the first husband and wife ever to represent Northern Ireland in Parliament.

Robinson is the longest serving Member of Parliament for any Belfast constituency since the Act of Union in 1800.

[edit] Leadership of the Democratic Unionist Party

Robinson's electoral success was marked when he was elected Deputy Leader of the DUP in 1980. He was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly for Belfast East on 20 October 1982 where he served as Chairman of the Environment Committee until it was dissolved in 1986.^[4]

Robinson resigned briefly as DUP Deputy Leader in 1987 when the Task Force Report, written jointly with Ulster Unionists, Harold McCusker MP and Frank Millar and calling for a strategic unionist rethink in the wake of the Anglo-Irish Agreement was rejected by their respective leaders, Ian Paisley and James Molyneaux.

He was elected to the Northern Ireland Forum on 30 May 1996 and served in it until it completed its work in 1998.^[9] On 25 June 1998, he was elected MLA for Belfast East in the Northern Ireland Assembly election.^[10] He was subsequently re-elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly in 2003 and again in 2007.

Robinson was Minister for Regional Development, which has overall responsibility for the Department for Regional Development (DRD), between 29 November 1999 to 27 July 2000 and 24 October 2001 to 11 October 2002. He was responsible for the introduction of free fares on public transport for the elderly and helped formulate the 25 year Regional Development Strategy for Northern Ireland and devised the 10 year Regional Transport Strategy.

Robinson was Minister of Finance and Personnel from 8 May 2007 to June 2008.^[1]

On 4 March 2008, Ian Paisley announced that he would step down as Leader of the DUP and First Minister in May 2008.^[11] On 14 April 2008, Robinson was nominated unanimously by the DUP MLAs as leader designate with Nigel Dodds as deputy leader designate of the DUP and on 17 April 2008 they were both ratified by the DUP's 120-member executive committee.^[12].^[13] He formally became leader on 31 May 2008.

[edit] First Minister

As Leader of the DUP, Robinson was ratified by the Northern Ireland Assembly as First Minister with Sinn Féin's Martin McGuinness as deputy First Minister (diarchy) on 5 June 2008.^[3]

[edit] Policies and views

[edit] Description of views

Robinson espouses a populist, statist form of Unionism.^{[citation needed]} He is strongly in favour of capital punishment and opposed to European integration in the European Union and the Council of Europe.^{[citation needed]} Nonetheless, he is in favour of state intervention and socialist measures which are popular with his largely working class constituents.^{[citation needed]}

While Deputy Leader of the DUP behind Ian Paisley he had a unique character and has an independent style.^{[citation needed]} He is regarded as the leader of the urban, secular, working class wing of the DUP (as opposed to Paisley's rural, Christian fundamentalist base), and the architect of the DUP's development in recent years of a slick electoral and media machine.^{[citation needed]} He is also seen as a leader of the realpolitik tendency within the DUP which acknowledges that it must at some point come to an accommodation with Sinn Féin.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Voted as MP (examples)

According to TheyWorkForYou Robinson has voted on key issues since 2001 like this:

• Has never voted on a transparent Parliament.
• Voted moderately for introducing a smoking ban.
• Voted moderately against introducing ID cards.
• Voted strongly against introducing foundation hospitals.
• Voted strongly against introducing student top-up fees.
• Voted a mixture of for and against Labour's anti-terrorism laws.
• Voted very strongly for the Iraq war.
• Voted moderately for an investigation into the Iraq war.
• Voted very strongly for replacing Trident.
• Voted strongly against the hunting ban.
• Voted moderately against equal LGBT rights.^[14]

[edit] Controversies

[edit] Invasion of Clontibret

On 7 August 1986, in protest at the Anglo-Irish Agreement, Robinson led a group of 500 loyalists into the town of Clontibret in County Monaghan in the Republic of Ireland. The loyalists entered the Garda station in the town and physically assaulted two Gardaí, before holding a quasi-military parade in the town square. Robinson was later arrested. He pleaded guilty to unlawful assembly and was fined IR£17500 in a Drogheda court to escape a prison sentence. As a result, Robinson briefly resigned from the DUP deputy leadership. ^[15] There was also violence both before and after a court appearance in Dundalk, including Ian Paisley being attacked with stones and petrol bombs after Jim Wells and other Robinson supporters waved flags and sang Loyalist songs.^[16] At his trial the judge described him as "a senior extremist politician".^[17][18]

[edit] Ulster Resistance

In November 1986, he spoke at the Ulster Hall demonstration which launched Ulster Resistance, an organisation which subsequently collaborated with the Ulster Defence Association and Ulster Volunteer Force to import arms from South Africa, resulting in Robinson leaving the organisation.^[18][19] Robinson was photographed wearing the loyalist paramilitary military uniform at an Ulster Resistance demonstration.

At a rally in Enniskillen, Peter Robinson announced; "'Thousands have already joined the movement and the task of shaping them into an effective force is continuing. The Resistance has indicated that drilling and training has already started. The officers of the nine divisions have taken up their duties'.^[20]

[edit] Christian views

On 30 October 2008 in his first extensive interview as First Minister interview for Hearts and Minds for BBC Northern Ireland, Peter Robinson publicly endorsed the controversial view, also shared by his wife Iris Robinson, that homosexuality was against Christian theology by expressing that “It wasn’t Iris Robinson who determined that homosexuality was an abomination, it was The Almighty. This is the Scriptures and it is a strange world indeed where somebody on the one hand talks about equality, but won’t allow Christians to have the equality, the right to speak, the right to express their views.” ^[21]. The comments angered LGBT Christian groups throughout the UK made worse by the fact that the Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister is tasked with ensuring equality for gay people in Northern Ireland.

It is believed that his wife's homophobic comments are currently being investigated by Police Service of Northern Ireland serious crime officers for contravening Article 9 of the Public Order (NI) Order 1987 by using threatening, abusive or insulting words which have the likelihood to stir up hatred and arouse fear. ^[22]

[edit] Satire

Robinson's character on the BBC's Folks on the Hill television programme is portrayed as aggressive and constantly trying to get away from the Ian Paisley-Martin McGuinness so-called "Chuckle Brothers" image when he works with Martin McGuinness.^[23] However it does not appear that he will escape a shared nickname as "Brothers Grimm" is catching on.^[24]

[edit] Personal life

Peter married Iris Robinson (née. Collins) on 26 July 1970 and they have three children, Jonathan, Gareth and Rebekah. His wife has joined him as a Councillor, a MLA and a MP. They are the first husband and wife ever to represent Northern Ireland constituencies in Parliament. On 28 May 2009 the Planning Service of Northern Ireland granted Robinson planning permission for six houses to be built in his rear garden on the Gransha Road^[25] in Belfast^[26].

[edit] Religion

Robinson is an Elim Pentecostal Christian and is a member of the Metropolitan Tabernacle Belfast, an Elim Pentecostal megachurch in Belfast.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Interests

• supports Chelsea Football Club

• likes golf and bowling

• keeps and cultures Koi fish, ornamental domesticated varieties of the common carp.

[edit] See also

• Democratic Unionist Party
• First Minister and deputy First Minister
• Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister
• Department of Finance and Personnel
• List of Northern Ireland members of the Privy Council

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• DUP
• Peter Robinson
• TheyWorkForYou
• Guardian

[edit] Offices held

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by William Craig	Member of Parliament for Belfast East 1979–present	Incumbent
Northern Ireland Assembly
Preceded by Newly created position	MLA for Belfast East 1998–present	Incumbent
Party political offices
Preceded by ?	Party Secretary of the Democratic Unionist Party 1975–1979	Succeeded by William Beattie
Preceded by William Beattie	Deputy Leader of the Democratic Unionist Party 1980–2008	Succeeded by Nigel Dodds
Preceded by Ian Paisley	Leader of the Democratic Unionist Party 2008–present	Incumbent
Political offices
Preceded by Newly created office	Minister for Regional Development 1999–2000	Succeeded by Gregory Campbell
Preceded by Gregory Campbell	Minister for Regional Development 2001–2002	Succeeded by Office Suspended 2002–07 (Conor Murphy, 2007–present)
Preceded by Office suspended	Minister of Finance and Personnel 2007–2008	Succeeded by Nigel Dodds
Preceded by Ian Paisley	First Minister of Northern Ireland 2008–present	Incumbent

v • d • e Heads of government of Northern Ireland Prime Ministers of Executives (1922–1972) James Craig, 1st Viscount Craigavon · John Miller Andrews · Basil Brooke, 1st Viscount Brookeborough · Terence O'Neill · James Chichester-Clark · Brian Faulkner Chief Executive of Executive (1973–1974) Brian Faulkner First Ministers and deputy First Ministers of Executives (2001–present) First Ministers David Trimble · Reg Empey (acting) · David Trimble · Ian Paisley · Peter Robinson deputy First Ministers Seamus Mallon · Seamus Mallon (acting) · Mark Durkan · Martin McGuinness · Martin McGuinness

v • d • e Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister (OFMDFM) Headquarters: Castle Buildings Department First Minister Party allocation Designated Unionist: Democratic Unionist Party First Minister Peter Robinson Junior Minister Robin Newton deputy First Minister Party allocation Designated Nationalist: Sinn Féin First Minister Martin McGuinness Junior Minister Gerry Kelly Permanent Secretary Bruce Robinson Executive agencies ILEX Urban Regeneration Company (jointly with the Department for Social Development) · Northern Ireland Bureau · Office of the Northern Ireland Executive in Brussels Committee Chairperson Danny Kennedy Deputy Chairperson Naomi Long Other Committee Members Martina Anderson · Tom Elliott · Dolores Kelly · Ian McCrea · Barry McElduff · Francie Molloy · Stephen Moutray · Jim Shannon · Jimmy Spratt Website: www.ofmdfmni.gov.uk

v • d • e Parliamentarians in Northern Ireland Westminster Gerry Adams • Gregory Campbell • Nigel Dodds • Pat Doherty • Jeffrey Donaldson • Mark Durkan • Michelle Gildernew • Sylvia Hermon • Willie McCrea • Alasdair McDonnell • Eddie McGrady • Martin McGuinness • Conor Murphy • Ian Paisley • Iris Robinson • Peter Robinson • David Simpson • Sammy Wilson European Parliament Bairbre de Brún • Diane Dodds • Jim Nicholson

v • d • e Leaders of political parties in the United Kingdom Parliament of the United Kingdom Gordon Brown (Labour) · David Cameron (Conservatives) · Nick Clegg (Liberal Democrats) · Peter Robinson (DUP) · Alex Salmond (SNP) · Gerry Adams (Sinn Féin) · Ieuan Wyn Jones (Plaid Cymru) · Mark Durkan (SDLP) · Richard Taylor (Health Concern) · Linda Smith (Respect) · Sir Reg Empey (UUP) · Lord Pearson (UKIP) Scottish Parliament Alex Salmond (SNP) · Iain Gray (Labour) · Annabel Goldie (Conservatives) · Tavish Scott (Liberal Democrats) · Patrick Harvie/Eleanor Scott (Green) National Assembly for Wales Carwyn Jones (Labour) · Ieuan Wyn Jones (Plaid Cymru) · Nick Bourne (Conservatives) · Kirsty Williams (Liberal Democrats) Northern Ireland Assembly Peter Robinson (DUP) · Gerry Adams (Sinn Féin) · Reg Empey (UUP) · Mark Durkan (SDLP) · David Ford (Alliance) · Kelly Andrews (Green) · Dawn Purvis (PUP) Portal:Politics - List of political parties - Politics of the United Kingdom

v • d • e Party leaders in Northern Ireland Peter Robinson, MP, MLA (DUP) • Gerry Adams, MP, MLA (Sinn Féin) • Sir Reg Empey, MLA (UUP) • Mark Durkan, MP, MLA (SDLP) • David Ford, MLA (Alliance)