The ('''UUP''', sometimes referred to as the '''Official Unionist Party''' or '''OUP''' or, in a historic sense, simply the '''Unionist Party''' ) is a moderate
Unionist political party in
Northern Ireland , which formed its government between
1921 and
1972 and was supported by most unionists throughout
The Troubles .
The Ulster Unionist Party traces its formal existence back to the foundation of the Ulster Unionist Council in
1905 . Prior to that date, however, there had been a less formally-organised Irish Unionist Party since the late 19th century, always dominated by Unionists from Ulster. Modern organised unionism properly emerged in response to Gladstone's introduction of the
First Home Rule Bill in 1886 in response to demands by the
Irish Parliamentary Party . The Irish Unionist Party was an alliance of
Conservatives and
Liberal Unionists who had split from the
Liberal Party on the
Home Rule issue.
The party had a strong association with the politico-religious
Orange Order , a
Protestant institution which is the counterpart of the smaller
Roman Catholic Ancient Order Of Hibernians . Though most unionist support was based in the geographic area that became Northern Ireland, there were at one time Unionist enclaves throughout southern Ireland. The Unionists in Cork and Dublin were particularly influential. The initial leadership of the Unionist Party all came from outside the six counties, with people like Colonel Saunderson,
Viscount (later The Earl Of) Midleton and the
Dublin -born Sir
Edward Carson . However, with the partition of Ireland under the
Government Of Ireland Act 1920 , Irish unionism in effect split. Many southern unionists became reconciled with the new
Irish Free State , many sitting in its senate or joining its political parties. Unionism's northern wing evolved into a separate Ulster Unionist Party.
Modern southern unionism has evolved into the
Reform Movement In Ireland & the
Irish Unionist Alliance . Both organizations are separate from the Ulster Unionist Party.
Until almost the very end of its period of power in
Northern Ireland the Unionist Party was led by a combination of
Landed Gentry (Sir
Basil Brooke Lord Brookeborough ,
Terence O'Neill and
James Chichester-Clark ) and gentrified industrial magnates (
Sir James Craig later
Lord Craigavon , and
John Miller Andrews ). Only its last
Prime Minister ,
Brian Faulkner was from a middle-class background.
In
1922 , Sir Edward Carson warned the new unionist leadership of Northern Ireland against practising any discrimination towards the
Roman Catholic minority in the region. It was advice that went unheeded. As former leader and
Nobel Peace Prize co-winner (with the
SDLP 's then leader,
John Hume )
David Trimble observed, Northern Ireland under the UUP governments was a "cold house for Catholics." In the
1960s , inspired by the
Civil Rights movement of
Martin Luther King and by attempts at reform under then Unionist Party leader
Terence O'Neill (later Lord O'Neill of the Maine) nationalists in the Northern ''Civil Rights Movement'' campaigned for reform. However, violent opposition from extreme
Loyalist s and right-wing campaigners like
Ian Paisley , coupled with the heavy-handled behaviour of the police, led to a resurgence in violence by the
Provisional IRA , a breakaway from the
Marxist Official IRA . Faced with what seemed like a threat of civil war, the
British Government ended the Unionist Party's hold on power in Northern Ireland, when it prorogued the Stormont Parliament in March
1972 .
Some liberal Unionists, who had advocated the policies of
Terence O'Neill left and formed the
Alliance Party in 1970, while the emergence of
Ian Paisley 's
Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) drew off some working-class and right-wing support. A more militant wing of the Unionist Party turned to the
Vanguard movement to steer unionism back to its "traditional" course. When this failed, they broke away and formed the separate
Vanguard Unionist Progressive Party in 1973.
Throughout this period the party was affiliated to the
National Union of the
Conservative Party and Ulster Unionist MPs at the Westminster Parliament were a part of the
Conservative block. To all intents and purposes the party functioned as the Northern Ireland branch of the Conservatives. (The names were different, but in the same period the
Scottish branch of the party used the term "Unionist" instead of Conservative as well.) In
1974 , in protest over the
Sunningdale Agreement the Westminster Ulster Unionist MPs ceased to take the Conservative Party whip. The party remained affiliated to the National Union but withdrew in
1985 in protest over the
Anglo-Irish Agreement . Subsequently the Conservative Party established a separate branch in Northern Ireland which has had little electoral success. There is frequent speculation that the Ulster Unionists may reunite with the Conservative Party, as the party has continued to support the Conservatives on essential votes. For example, Ulster Unionist support was necessary to sustain the Conservative Government of Prime Minister
John Major during the ratification of the
Maastricht Treaty in
1993 when many of his own MPs (the
Maastricht Rebels ) revolted. Many commentators felt this gave the UUP much influence on Major's Northern Ireland policy at the time.
The UUP maintained a formal connection with the
Orange Order from its foundation until 2005, and with the
Apprentice Boys Of Derry until 1975. Only three of the party's Westminster MPs (
Enoch Powell ,
Ken Maginnis and
Sylvia Hermon ) have not been members of the Orange. This was a factor in discouraging Catholic membership of the party. While the party was considering structural reforms, including the connection with the Order, it was the Order itself that severed the connection after most of its membership transferred their allegiance to the
Democratic Unionist Party .
The UUP's youth wing is the ''
Ulster Young Unionist Council ''. A body of this name has existed since 1949, however this disbanded in 1974 and January 2004. A group of the same name formed in March 2004.
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The
Sunningdale Agreement , which led to the formation of a power-sharing Executive under the then Ulster Unionist leader,
Brian Faulkner provoked ruptions within the party. In the 1973 elections to the Executive the party was deeply divided, a division that did not formally end until January 1974 when the anti-Sunningdale faction triumphed. Faulkner was overthrown and set up the
Unionist Party Of Northern Ireland (UPNI). The Ulster Unionists were now led by
Harry West from
1974 until
1979 . In the
February 1974 General Election , the party participated in the
United Ulster Unionist Coalition (UUUC) with Vanguard and the Democratic Unionists. The result was that the UUUC won 11 out of 12 parliamentary seats in Northern Ireland on a fiercely anti-Sunningdale platform, despite winning barely 50% of the popular vote. This result was a fatal blow for the Executive, which soon collapsed. Under West's leadership the party recruited
Enoch Powell , who became Ulster Unionist MP for
South Down . Powell advocated a policy of , whereby Northern Ireland would be administered as an integral part of the United Kingdom. This policy was to cause ruptions both within the Ulster Unionists and within wider Unionism as Powell's ideas conflicted with those committed to the restoration of devolved government to the province. The party also made gains when the
Vanguard Party broke up and the rump merged back into the Ulster Unionists. The
United Ulster Unionist Party (UUUP) emerged from the remains of Vanguard but folded in the early 1980s, as did the UPNI. In both cases the main beneficiaries of this were the Ulster Unionists, now under the leadership of
James Molyneaux (
1979 -
1995 ). In October 1995, Patricia Campbell, a Catholic member of the UUP and personal secretary to Molyneaux, filed an employment discrimination case against the UUP with the
Fair Employment Commission which was settled out of court.
The party was led by
David Trimble between 1995 and 2005. Although his support (which some nationalists claim to be ambiguous) for the
Belfast Agreement caused a rupture within the Party into pro-agreement and anti-Agreement factions, he maintained unity for a while. Trimble served as
First Minister Of Northern Ireland in the power-sharing administration, created under the
Belfast Agreement .
The UUP had a Roman Catholic
MLA (member of the
Northern Ireland Legislative Assembly ) (Sir
John Gorman ) until the 2003 election. In March 2005 the
Orange Order voted to end its official links with the UUP, while still maintaining the same unofficial links as other interest groups. Mr Trimble faced down Orange Order critics who tried to suspend him for his attendance at a Catholic funeral for a young boy murdered by the
Real IRA , in the infamous
Omagh Bombing . Trimble and
Irish President Mary McAleese , in a sign of unity, walked into the church together.
The party fared disastrously in the 2005 general election, losing five of the six Westminster seats it had previously won in the 2001 general election (the MP for one had defected to the DUP). In the 2005 general election, only the Labour Party lost more seats. David Trimble lost his seat in
Upper Bann and soon resigned as party leader. The
Leadership Election To Succeed Him was won by Sir
Reg Empey .
As a party reflecting the centre-ground of Unionist opinion, the broad policy outlook of the Ulster Unionist Party reflects the society in which it works and aims to develop and strengthen Northern Ireland's role as a partner within the United Kingdom.
- Constitutional Monarchist
- Pro-devolution with a strong attachment to British Parliamentary Traditions
- Seeks the restoration of the Stormont Assembly
- Supports in principle power-sharing with democratic nationalist parties in Northern Ireland
''Northern Ireland''
- Seeks to promote and strengthen the constitutional union between Northern Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales within the constitutional framework of the United Kingdom
- Seeks to develop friendly relations between all the peoples of the British Isles
- Supportive of a positive, co-operative relationship between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic
''North/South''
- The party has been supportive of constructive co-operation between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic, since the latter renounced it's territorial claim upon Northern Ireland as part of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.
- Participated in North-South Ministerial Council (NSMC)
- Excluded Sinn Fein ministers from NSMC meetings
''East/West''
''Justice / Security''
Lady
Sylvia Hermon MP is the wife of former
RUC Chief Constable, Sir
John Hermon .
- Opposed Patten Report (1999) and subsequent changes to RUC
- Against 50:50 recruitment in PSNI and retention of full-time reserve to keep up police numbers
- Supports strong UK anti-terrorist legislation, identity cards, anti-social behaviour orders and statutory Victims Charter for victims of crime
- Demands Assets Recovery Agency actions against loyalist and republican paramilitaties
- Demands abolition of Parades Commission
- UUP social policy places an emphasis on social cohesion, on the role of the family, and on the eradication of poverty within Northern Ireland society. {Link without Title}
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''Agriculture''
''Culture''
''Education''
- The party promotes a series of measures to reduce the "brain drain" of educated young Northern Irish people {Link without Title}
''Environment''
- Proposes independent Environmental Protection Agency and Marine Act for coastal protection
- Supports reduced fossil fuel dependency and increased renewable energy use
- Aims to complete all Area of Special Scientific Interest designations by 2010
''Health''
The party supports free personal care for the elderly
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''Social Change''
- Regionalist approach seeks maximum investment in Northern Ireland economy
''Development''
''Public finance''
''Europe''
- Euro-sceptic centrist
- Opposes European Constitution
- Favours retention of the Pound Sterling, opposes UK entry into the Euro
''Wider World''
- Atlanticist
- Expresses support for involvement of Northern Ireland citizens in UK diplomacy and United Nations
- Supports NATO alliance with the United Kingdom's NATO allies
- General interest in international development issues
Under the new leadership of Reg Empey, the system of party spokespersons was re-organised so that there is one chief spokesperson for each major policy issue, usually backed up with a support group of rank and file party members.
Chief spokespersons as of January 2006 were:
