Paul Butler
Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly
for Lagan Valley
In office
7 March 2007 – 2011
Preceded byMarietta Farrell
Succeeded byBrenda Hale
Personal details
BornLisburn, Northern Ireland
Political partySinn Féin
WebsiteSinn Féin

Paul Butler (Irish: Pól de Buitléir[1]) is a republican politician in Northern Ireland and a former member of the Provisional Irish Republican Army. He served as a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly for Lagan Valley from 2007 to 2011.[2][3]

Involvement in the Troubles

At the age of 17, Butler was convicted of killing 50-year-old reserve Royal Ulster Constabulary officer. As a result, he spent 15 years in jail.[4][5]

Lisburn City Council

Paul Butler is the leader of the Sinn Féin group on the Lisburn City Council. The party currently holds four seats on the council, making it the third party and the largest nationalist party. Butler has a served as a Councillor for Lisburn City Council since 1997 and is a member of their Strategic Policy, Planning and Finance Committees.[6][7] Butler claims he campaigns against discrimination on the council, culminating in the Irish Government sending a representative to witness council proceedings. Nationalists claim that the unionist majority on the council has prevented nationalists from taking council positions. Butler campaigned for the town to gain city status which was bestowed on the city by the British Monarch.[citation needed]

Westminster elections

Butler stood in the UK general elections in 2001 and 2005 in the Lagan Valley constituency but was not elected.[8] In the 2005 general election, Sinn Féin received the largest share of the vote by a nationalist party, overtaking the SDLP.

In October 2023, he called on the Social Democratic and Labour Party to not stand a candidate in Lagan Valley in the next general election.[9]

Standing down

Butler announced that he will not contest the May Assembly elections after only one term as an MLA. "I am standing down," confirmed Butler. "The Party's position on this is that anyone who is a councillor and an MLA should only have one job."[10]

Assembly elections

Results of the election to the Northern Irish Assembly, Lagan Valley, 2003

Party Candidate 1st Pref Result
Ulster Unionist Jeffrey Donaldson 14,104 Elected
DUP Edwin Poots 5,175 Elected
Alliance Seamus Close 4,408 Elected
DUP Andrew Hunter 3,300 Not Elected
Sinn Féin Paul Butler 3,242 Not Elected
SDLP Patricia Lewsley* 3,133 Elected
Ulster Unionist Billy Bell 2,782 Elected
Independent Ivan Davis 2,223 Not elected
Ulster Unionist Norah Beare 1,508 Elected
Ulster Unionist Jim Kirkpatrick 675 Not elected
NI Conservatives Joanne Johnston 395 Not elected
PUP Andrew Park 212 Not elected
Workers' Party Frances McCarthy 97 Not elected

Results of the election to the Northern Irish Assembly, Lagan Valley, 2007

Butler became the first Sinn Féin member for Lagan Valley in the Northern Irish Assembly. He won the SDLP seat previously held by Patricia Lewsley and subsequently Marietta Farrell. Butler was the only nationalist elected in the six-seater constituency.

Party Candidate 1st Pref Result Count
DUP Jeffrey Donaldson 9,793 Elected 1
Sinn Féin Paul Butler 5,098 Elected 6
Ulster Unionist Basil McCrea 4,031 Elected 7
Alliance Trevor Lunn 3,765 Elected 7
DUP Jonathan Craig 3,471 Elected 8
DUP Edwin Poots 3,457 Elected 9
DUP Paul Givan 3,377 Not elected 9
SDLP Marietta Farrell 2,839 Not elected 5
Ulster Unionist Billy Bell 2,599 Not elected 6
Ulster Unionist Ronnie Crawford 1,147 Not elected 4
Green Michael Rogan 922 Not elected 4
UK Unionist Robert McCartney 853 Not elected 3
NI Conservatives Neil Johnston 387 Not elected 2
Workers' Party John Magee 83 Not elected 2

Notes and references

  1. ^ Microsoft Word – PC1928.doc Archived 17 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ "Lagan Valley: Sinn Féin secure first seat". The Belfast Telegraph. 9 March 2007.
  3. ^ "Lagan Valley: Election results". BBC. 9 March 2007.
  4. ^ "Hansard – UK Parliament". Hansard. 10 June 1998. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011.
  5. ^ "'Truly historic' change of direction". BBC News. 28 January 2007.
  6. ^ "Ard Fheis speech by Paul Butler, Sinn Féin councillor on Lisburn City Council". Sinn Féin. 10 March 2007. Archived from the original on 3 September 2012.
  7. ^ "Candidate Profile – Paul Butler". The Guardian. UK. 10 March 2007.
  8. ^ "Lagan Valley election history". Ark. 10 March 2007.
  9. ^ Breslin, John (23 October 2023). "Former Sinn Féin MLA calls on his party and SDLP to stand aside in Lagan Valley in general election". The Irish News. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
  10. ^ Baker, Pete. "Slugger O'Toole - SF MLA Paul Butler to stand down". Slugger O'Toole. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
Northern Ireland Assembly Preceded byMarietta Farrell MLA for Lagan Valley 2007–2011 Succeeded byBrenda Hale
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