David Burnside
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (February 2008) |
David Burnside | |
---|---|
Member of the Legislative Assembly for South Antrim | |
In office 26 November 2003 – 1 June 2009 | |
Preceded by | Duncan Shipley-Dalton |
Succeeded by | Danny Kinahan |
Member of Parliament for South Antrim | |
In office 7 June 2001 – 11 April 2005 | |
Preceded by | William McCrea |
Succeeded by | William McCrea |
Majority | 1,011 (2.3%) |
Personal details | |
Born | David Wilson Boyd Burnside 24 August 1951 Ballymoney, Northern Ireland |
Nationality | British |
Political party | Ulster Unionist Party |
Children | 2 |
Alma mater | Queen's University Belfast |
Profession | Businessman |
Military service | |
Allegiance | United Kingdom |
Branch/service | British Army |
Unit | Ulster Defence Regiment |
David Wilson Boyd Burnside (born 24 August 1951) is an Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) politician, who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for South Antrim from 2001 to 2005.
Burnside was also a
In the 1970s Burnside served as Press Officer for the
Since 2015 he has been a member of the Steering Committee of the Constitution Reform Group (CRG),
British Airways
In 1984 Burnside was recruited by the
His success is perhaps overshadowed by the nature of his departure. British Airways was witnessing the emergence of a potentially strong rival, Richard Branson's Virgin Atlantic. Virgin, which began with one route and one Boeing 747 in 1984 was beginning to emerge as a serious threat on some of BA's most lucrative routes.
Following Virgin's highly publicized mission of mercy to Iraq to fly home hostages who had been held by
It was an article written by Burnside (given legal clearance) in BA News, the company's in house newsletter, that prompted Branson's legal action.[citation needed] Following the case Burnside was awarded a settlement of approximately £400,000 and free first class travel on BA for four years. [citation needed]
Return to politics
Along with several prominent current Ulster Unionist politicians, Burnside was a member of the Vanguard Movement. He was press officer for the organisation from 1974 to 1977.[8]
He was selected to defend the South Antrim constituency for the Ulster Unionists in a by-election in 2000, but narrowly lost to the Democratic Unionist Party candidate Rev. Willie McCrea.
However he reversed this defeat in the
On 23 June 2003, Burnside, Donaldson and Smyth resigned the UUP whip in the House of Commons, launching a strong attack on Trimble's leadership.[9] The trio successfully fought off attempts to discipline them using the courts and in November 2003 both Burnside and Donaldson were elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly. However, Burnside declined to follow Donaldson when he resigned from the Ulster Unionist Party in December 2003. In 2005 he lost his Westminster Parliamentary seat. Burnside successfully retained his Assembly seat in March 2007. He declined to contest the 2005 leadership election.
Burnside resigned as an Assembly Member in June 2009 to concentrate on his business interests. His seat was taken by Antrim councillor Danny Kinahan.
David Burnside was revealed to have taken a group of prominent Russians, including a close ally of Vladimir Putin, to the 2013 Conservative summer fundraising party and introduced them to David Cameron.[8]
Rangers Football Club
Burnside was linked to a potential Rangers takeover in 2007[10] but nothing came of it. There was not enough investment available for the move.
References
- ^ [1] Archived 2 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "North Antrim 1973-82". ark.ac.uk.
- ^ [2][permanent dead link]
- ^ David Burnside Profile BBC Politics
- ^ "Steering Committee".
- ^ "Act of Union Bill [HL] - Parliamentary Bills - UK Parliament". bills.parliament.uk. Archived from the original on 11 May 2021. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
- ^ "General election 2019: Ten lesser-known MPs to keep an eye on". BBC News. 15 December 2019 – via bbc.co.uk.
- ^ a b "The Ballymoney trail: David Burnside's voyage from Troubles to oligarchs' PR". the Guardian. 7 July 2014.
- ^ "UUP rebels to face discipline", BBC News, 26 June 2003.
- ^ "Burnside not put off Rangers bid", BBC Sport,5 March 2007.
Sources
- Gregory, Martyn. Dirty Tricks: British Airways' Secret War Against Virgin Atlantic. London: Virgin, 2000. ISBN 0-7535-0458-8
- BBC Profile
- Glasgow Rangers Burnside Article
- Maiden Speech : House of Commons - 26 June 2001