Cecil Walker
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (November 2015) |
Sir Alfred Cecil Walker | |
---|---|
Member of Parliament for Belfast North | |
In office 9 June 1983 – 14 May 2001 | |
Preceded by | John McQuade |
Succeeded by | Nigel Dodds |
Personal details | |
Born | 17 December 1924 Belfast, Northern Ireland |
Died | 3 January 2007 Newtownabbey, Northern Ireland, UK | (aged 82)
Political party | Ulster Unionist Party |
Occupation | Activist; politician (Member of Parliament for North Belfast (1983–2001) |
Sir Alfred Cecil Walker (17 December 1924 – 3 January 2007) was an Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for North Belfast from 1983 to 2001.
Walker was born in
He became actively involved in Unionist politics in the 1970s, was an unsuccessful pro-White Paper Unionist candidate at the election to the 1973 Northern Ireland Assembly and was elected to Belfast City Council in 1977.[3] He contested the Belfast North constituency in the 1979 general election, narrowly losing to John McQuade of the Democratic Unionist Party. He won the seat 4 years later, in the 1983 general election, after McQuade retired. He was one of the MPs with the lowest attendance rate at Westminster.[citation needed]
Along with all other Unionist MPs, he resigned his seat in December 1985 in protest at the
However, he lost his own seat to Nigel Dodds of the DUP in the 2001 general election, following a disastrous televised debate at Crumlin Road Courthouse in his constituency, in which he stumbled over some of the most rudimentary questions. His vote declined from 21,000 to 4,000, his 13,000 majority was transformed into a 6,000 majority for the DUP and he was beaten into fourth place behind Sinn Féin and the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) - although this was also partly because there had been no DUP candidate in the previous general election.[1][2]
He was noted for the moderation of his Unionist views, which contrasted with the deep sectarian divisions in his constituency. He said he would have no objection to amending the
Death
He lived in Glengormley, in County Antrim, and died of a heart attack in Newtownabbey. He was survived by his wife and their two sons.
References
- ^ a b c d "Obituary". The Telegraph. 5 January 2007. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
- ^ a b "Obituary". The Independent. 5 January 2007. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
- ^ Northern Ireland elections
- ^ "No. 56595". The London Gazette. 14 June 2002. p. 1.
- Former MP Cecil Walker dies at 81, BBC News, 3 January 2007
- Obituary, The Independent, 5 January 2007
- Obituary[dead link], The Daily Telegraph, 5 January 2007
- Obituary, The Times, 9 January 2007
- Obituary, The Guardian, 15 January 2007
- Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs
- Times Guide to the House of Commons, 1992 edition