| Prime Minister of Northern Ireland | |
|---|---|
 Arms of the Executive Committee | |
| Nominator | House of Commons |
| Appointer | Governor of Northern Ireland |
| Term length | At His Majesty's pleasure so long asGeneral Elections are held no more than five years apart. |
| Inaugural holder | Sir James Craig |
| Formation | 7 June 1921 |
| Final holder | Brian Faulkner |
| Abolished | 30 March 1972(suspended) 18 July 1973(abolished)suspended in 1972 and then abolished in 1973, along with the contemporary government, whendirect rule ofNorthern Ireland was transferred to London. |
| Succession |
|
Theprime minister of Northern Ireland was the head of theGovernment of Northern Ireland between 1921 and 1972. No such office was provided for in theGovernment of Ireland Act 1920;[1] however, theLord Lieutenant of Ireland,[2] as withgovernors-general in otherWestminster systems such as inCanada, chose to appoint someone to head the executive even though no such post existed instatute law. The office-holder assumed the titleprime minister to draw parallels with theprime minister of the United Kingdom. On the advice of the new prime minister, the lord lieutenant then created theDepartment of the Prime Minister.[3] The office of Prime Minister of Northern Ireland was suspended in 1972 and then abolished in 1973, along with the contemporary government, whendirect rule ofNorthern Ireland was transferred to London.
The Government of Ireland Act provided for the appointment of the executive committee of thePrivy Council of Northern Ireland by thegovernor.[4] No parliamentary vote was required. Nor, theoretically, was the executive committee and its prime ministerresponsible to theHouse of Commons of Northern Ireland. In reality the governor chose the leader of the party with a majority in the House to form a government. On each occasion this was the leader of theUlster Unionist Party; such was the UUP's electoral dominance using both a simple plurality and for the first two elections, a proportional electoral system. All prime ministers of Northern Ireland were members of theOrange Order.[5]
The prime minister's residence from 1920 until 1922 was Cabin Hill, later to become the junior school forCampbell College. After 1922Stormont Castle was used, though some prime ministers chose to live inStormont House, the unused residence of theSpeaker of the House of Commons of Northern Ireland.
The new offices offirst minister and deputy first minister were created by theGood Friday Agreement of 1998. In contrast with the Westminster-style system of the earlier Stormont government, the newNorthern Ireland Executive operates on the principles ofconsociational democracy.
In 1974,Brian Faulkner was chosen to lead theNorthern Ireland Executive not as Prime Minister of Northern Ireland but asChief Executive of Northern Ireland.
| No. | Name (Birth–Death) Constituency | Portrait | Term of office | Elected (Parliament) | Ministry | Party | Last office(s) held before election | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Sir James Craig (created1stViscount Craigavon in 1927)[6] (1871–1940) MP forDown until 1929 MP forNorth Down from 1929 |  | 7 June 1921 | 24 November 1940 | 1921 (1st) | Craigavon | Ulster Unionist Party | Parliamentary and Financial Secretary to the Admiralty (1920–1921) | |
| 1925 (2nd) | |||||||||
| 1929 (3rd) | |||||||||
| 1933 (4th) | |||||||||
| 1938 (5th) | |||||||||
| 2. | John Miller Andrews (1871–1956) MP forMid Down | .png) | 27 November 1940 | 1 May 1943 | — (5th) | Andrews | Ulster Unionist Party | Minister of Finance (1937–1941) | |
| 3. | Sir Basil Brooke (createdThe 1st Viscount Brookeborough in 1952)[7] (1888–1973) MP forLisnaskea |  | 1 May 1943 | 26 March 1963 | — (5th) | Brookeborough | Ulster Unionist Party | Minister of Commerce (1941–1943) | |
| 1945 (6th) | |||||||||
| 1949 (7th) | |||||||||
| 1953 (8th) | |||||||||
| 1958 (9th) | |||||||||
| 1962 (10th) | |||||||||
| 4. | Terence O'Neill (1914–1990) MP forBannside | .png) | 25 March 1963 | 1 May 1969 | — (10th) | O'Neill | Ulster Unionist Party | Minister of Finance (1956–1963) | |
| 1965 (11th) | |||||||||
| 1969 (12th) | |||||||||
| 5. | James Chichester-Clark (1923–2002) MP forSouth Londonderry |  | 1 May 1969 | 23 March 1971 | — (12th) | Chichester-Clark | Ulster Unionist Party | Minister of Agriculture (1967–1969) Leader of the House of Commons (1968–1969) | |
| 6. | Brian Faulkner (1921–1977) MP forEast Down | .jpg) | 23 March 1971 | 30 March 1972 | — (12th) | Faulkner | Ulster Unionist Party | Minister of Development (1969–1971) | |
By the 20th century, the Order had pervaded the highest echelons of society. Every prime minister of Northern Ireland, from Partition in 1921 to the return of direct rule in 1972, was an Orangeman, as are a number of current ministers in the Northern Ireland Executive.