The Lord Weir of Ballyholme | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Minister for Education | |
| In office 11 January 2020 – 13 June 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Himself (2017) |
| Succeeded by | Michelle McIlveen |
| In office 25 May 2016 – 2 March 2017 | |
| Preceded by | John O'Dowd |
| Succeeded by | Himself (2020) |
| Member of the House of Lords | |
| Life peerage 16 November 2022 | |
| Member of theNorthern Ireland Assembly forStrangford | |
| In office 2 March 2017 – 28 March 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Jonathan Bell |
| Succeeded by | Nick Mathison |
| Member of theNorthern Ireland Assembly forNorth Down | |
| In office 25 June 1998 – 26 January 2017 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Member of North Down Borough Council | |
| In office 5 May 2005 – 22 May 2014 | |
| Preceded by | Patricia Wallace |
| Succeeded by | Council abolished |
| Constituency | Ballyholme and Groomsport |
| Northern Ireland Forum Member forNorth Down | |
| In office 30 May 1996 – 25 April 1998 | |
| Preceded by | New forum |
| Succeeded by | Forum dissolved |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Peter James Weir (1968-11-21)21 November 1968 (age 57) |
| Nationality | British |
| Party | DUP (2002–present) UUP (until 2001) |
| Alma mater | Queen's University Belfast |
| Profession | Barrister |
Peter James Weir, Baron Weir of Ballyholme (born 21 November 1968), is aDemocratic Unionist Party (DUP) politician who served asMinister for Education in theNorthern Ireland Executive from 2016 to 2017 and from 2020 to 2021.[1] Weir was the first non-Sinn Féin legislator (followingMartin McGuinness,Caitríona Ruane, andJohn O'Dowd) to head the Department of Education since the department came into existence on 2 December 1999.
He served as aMember of the Northern Ireland Assembly (MLA) from 1998 to 2022, originally being a member forNorth Down, which he represented from 1998 to 2017, before being elected as a member forStrangford in 2017. He lost his seat at the2022 Northern Ireland Assembly election. Since 2022 he has been a member of theHouse of Lords.
Weir attendedBangor Grammar School and graduated fromThe Queen's University of Belfast in Law and Accountancy. He was called to theBar of Northern Ireland in 1992 and is a former editor ofThe Ulster Review. Weir has been a member of the Queen's University Senate since 1996 and is also leading member of the University Convocation. He was elected to theNorthern Ireland Peace Forum in 1996 for the constituency ofNorth Down.
Weir is a former chairman of theYoung Unionists (theUUP Youth Wing).
Weir refused to support theGood Friday Agreement of 1998, saying in one television interview that the only positive comment he could summon for the Agreement was that it was "very nicely typed".[2] A leading critic of then-party leaderDavid Trimble's policies, Weir was elected to theNorthern Ireland Assembly in the1998 election.[3]
Weir was selected as his party's candidate to fight the2001 general election inNorth Down, but a month before the election tensions between him and the party reached the stage where he was deselected and replaced bySylvia Hermon. Weir was later expelled from the Ulster Unionist Party for refusing to support the re-election ofDavid Trimble asFirst Minister of Northern Ireland. Following a period as an Independent Unionist, Weir joined theDemocratic Unionist Party (DUP) in 2002.
Since then, he has been re-elected to theNorthern Ireland Assembly inNorth Down at each election for the DUP. In the2005 Westminster election Weir was a DUP candidate for North Down, but lost toSylvia, Lady Hermon, of theUlster Unionist Party.
He lost his seat in the2022 Northern Ireland Assembly election.[4]
He is a former member of theNorth Down Borough Council.
It was announced on 14 October 2022, that as part of the2022 Special Honours, Weir would receive alife peerage, sitting for the Democratic Unionist Party.[5] On 16 November 2022, Weir was createdBaron Weir of Ballyholme,ofBallyholme in theCounty of Down.[6]
Lord Weir of Ballyholme is abarrister by profession.
He is a member of theOrange Order and theRoyal Black Preceptory. He attends Hamilton Road Presbyterian Church.[7]
Weir reported in November 2021 that one of his toes had been amputated as a result of an infection following atype 1 diabetes diagnosis.[8]
| Northern Ireland Forum | ||
|---|---|---|
| New forum | Member forNorth Down 1996–1998 | Forum dissolved |
| Northern Ireland Assembly | ||
| New assembly | MLA forNorth Down 1998–2017 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | MLA forStrangford 2017–2022 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Minister of Education 2016–2017 2020–2021 | Succeeded by |
| Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom | ||
| Preceded by | Gentlemen Baron Weir of Ballyholme | Followed by |