Robert Coulter (Northern Ireland politician) explained

Robert Coulter
Office:Member of the Legislative Assembly
for Antrim North
Assembly:Northern Ireland
Term Start:25 June 1998
Term End:5 May 2011
Predecessor:New Creation
Successor:Robin Swann
Office1:Member of
Ballymena Borough Council
Constituency1:Bannside
Term Start1:19 May 1993
Term End1:7 June 2001
Predecessor1:New district
Successor1:Seamus Laverty
Constituency2:Ballymena Town
Term Start2:15 May 1985
Term End2:19 May 1993
Predecessor2:New district
Successor2:District abolished
Office3:Member of the Northern Ireland Forum
for North Antrim
Term Start3:30 May 1996
Term End3:25 April 1998
Predecessor3:Forum created
Successor3:Forum dissolved
Birth Date:23 October 1929
Birth Place:Ballymena, Northern Ireland
Party:Ulster Unionist Party
Alma Mater:Trinity College, Dublin University of Ulster
Profession:Clergyman

Robert Coulter (23 October 1929 – 5 September 2018) was an Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) politician who was a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for North Antrim from 1998 to 2011. He was a prominent proponent of unionism, and was the second oldest MLA after the Rev. Ian Paisley at the time of his retirement in 2011.

Career

Between 1998 and 2011 he served as an Ulster Unionist Party MLA for North Antrim.[1] Coulter was born in 1929, making him the second oldest MLA after the Rev. Ian Paisley.

He was educated at Ballymena College, Trinity College, Dublin and the University of Ulster.

He was married, with one son and one daughter. He was a retired Presbyterian minister and a former lecturer in religious studies at Belfast Institute for Further and Higher Education.[2]

He was elected a Councillor for Ballymena Borough Council in 1985 and was Mayor of Ballymena from 1993 to 1996.

Coulter was elected Alderman of the Borough of Ballymena in 1996.

He was elected to represent the constituency of North Antrim in the Northern Ireland Forum for Political Dialogue (1996–1998)

At the 1998 Northern Ireland Assembly election, he was elected as an Ulster Unionist Party MLA for North Antrim.[3] He was a member of the Health, Social Service and Public Safety Committee in the 1998-2003 Assembly.

Coulter was re-elected to his Assembly seat in 2007.[4]

In 2010, the reverend Dr. Robert Coulter was honored for his public service with membership in the Civil Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire.[5]

Coulter did not put his name forward for the 2011 election in North Antrim, effectively retiring. He was in his 80s.[6] He died on 5 September 2018.[7]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Biography - Robert Coulter . 2010-03-28 . Northern Ireland Assembly . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100313052549/http://www.niassembly.gov.uk/members/biogs_07/coulter_r.htm . 13 March 2010 . dmy-all .
  2. https://web.archive.org/web/20080515131032/http://www.stratagem-ni.com/antrimnorthmlas.php Stratagem - Public Affairs and Government Relations
  3. Web site: Biography - Robert Coulter . 2010-03-28 . Northern Ireland Assembly . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100313052549/http://www.niassembly.gov.uk/members/biogs_07/coulter_r.htm . 13 March 2010 . dmy-all .
  4. News: Coulter thanks voters for three in a row victory . 2010-03-28 . 2007-03-14 . Ballymoney and Moyle Times.
  5. Web site: Order of the British Empire, Civil - Members MBE - 2010 New Years Honours List . 17 March 2010 . 11 March 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100311193826/http://www.debretts.com/people/honours/2010-new-years-honours-list/order-of-the-british-empire-civil/members-(mbe).aspx . dead .
  6. Web site: BBC News - Ulster Unionist MLA Robert Coulter to retire. BBC News. BBC News. 30 August 2012.
  7. Web site: Tributes as former UUP MLA Robert Coulter dies aged 88. 6 September 2018. The Irish News.