Editing Martin Smyth

{{Short description|Northern Irish unionist clergyman and politician}}
{{for|the Irish Olympic boxer|Martin Smyth (boxer)}}
{{Use Hiberno-English|date=October 2023}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix    = 
| name                = Martin Smyth
| honorific-suffix    = 
| image               = 
| parliament          = 
| majority            = 
| term_start          = 4 March 1982
| term_end            = 11 April 2005
| predecessor         = [[Robert Bradford (NI politician)|Robert Bradford]]
| successor           = [[Alasdair McDonnell]]
| office1 = [[Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly]] <br/> for [[Belfast South (Assembly constituency)|Belfast South]]
| term_start1 = 20 October 1982
| term_end1 = 1986
| predecessor1 = Assembly re-established
| successor1 = Assembly abolished
| office2    = [[Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention|Member of the Constitutional Convention]] <br/> for [[Belfast South (Assembly constituency)|Belfast South]]
| term_start2 = 1975
| term_end2 = 1976
| predecessor2 = Convention created 
| successor2 = Convention dissolved 
| birth_date          = {{birth date and age|1931|6|15|df=yes}}
| birth_place         = [[Belfast]], [[Northern Ireland]]
| death_date          = 
| death_place         = 
| restingplace        = 
| birthname           = 
| nationality         = [[United Kingdom|British]]
| party               = [[Ulster Unionist Party]]
| alma_mater          = [[Trinity College Dublin]]
| occupation          = 
| profession          = Clergyman
| office              = [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Member of Parliament]] <br /> for [[Belfast South (UK Parliament constituency)|Belfast South]]
}}

'''William Martin Smyth''' (born 15 June 1931) is a [[Northern Ireland|Northern Irish]] [[Unionists (Ireland)|unionist]] clergyman-politician. An ordained minister of the [[Presbyterian Church in Ireland]], he was [[Grand master (order)|Grand Master]] of the [[Orange Institution|Orange Order]] during much of the [[Troubles in Northern Ireland|Troubles]] and served as the [[Ulster Unionist Party]] (UUP) [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Member of Parliament]] (MP) for [[Belfast South (UK Parliament constituency)|Belfast South]] from 1982 to 2005.<ref>{{cite web |title=Reverend Martin Smyth |url=https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/people/reverend-martin-smyth/index.html |website=Hansard |access-date=14 May 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Parliamentary career for The Rev Martin Smyth - MPs and Lords |url=https://members.parliament.uk/member/644/career |website=UK Parliament |access-date=14 May 2021 |language=en}}</ref> He was also a vice-president of the [[Conservative Monday Club]].

Smyth was minister of Raffrey, [[County Down]], congregation from 1957 to 1963 and of Alexandra Church, [[Belfast]], 1963–1982.

==Early life==
Smyth was brought up in the [[Donegall Road]] area of [[Belfast]] and attended [[Methodist College Belfast]] and [[Trinity College Dublin]].<ref>{{cite web|last1=Lynn|first1=Brendan|title=Biographies of People Prominent During 'the Troubles'|url=http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/biography/Smyht_Martin_1997.html|website=CAIN Web Service|access-date=29 July 2016}}</ref>

==Early political career==

Smyth's appointment as head of the Orange Order was seen at the time as a working-class revolt against its middle-class leadership.{{cn|date=October 2023}} In the 1970s, he was prominent in the Vanguard movement, a faction within the UUP. However, when it split from the UUP to form the [[Vanguard Unionist Progressive Party]], Smyth chose to remain with the UUP. In 1975, he was elected to the [[Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention|Constitutional Convention]] for Belfast South, polling more than double the electoral quota.<ref name=autogenerated2>[http://www.ark.ac.uk/elections/csb.htm South Belfast 1973–1984] ARK – Access Research Knowledge</ref>

==Member of Parliament==
Smyth was selected to fill the vacancy caused by the murder of [[Robert Bradford (NI politician)|Robert Bradford]], MP for South Belfast. In the [[1982 Belfast South by-election|1982 by-election]], he received over 17,000 votes and was returned.<ref name=autogenerated2 /> Later the same year, he was elected to the [[Northern Ireland Assembly]], again polling double the electoral quota.<ref name=autogenerated2 /> He, along with all other Unionist MPs, resigned his seat in 1985 in protest at the [[Anglo-Irish Agreement]] and successfully defended the seat in the subsequent by election.<ref>[http://www.ark.ac.uk/elections/bsb.htm South Belfast, 1983–1992] ARK – Access Research Knowledge</ref> In his paper "A Federated People" (published by the Joint Unionist Working Party in 1987), Smyth proposed a federal United Kingdom with the state governments of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Each would be autonomous and, most significantly, fully independent from the federal parliament and government of the United Kingdom at Westminster.

Smyth was on the parliamentary advisory board of [[Western Goals Institute|Western Goals (UK)]], which held a well-attended fringe meeting at the Conservative Party conference in October 1988 on the subject of "International Terrorism – how the West can fight back". He was one of numerous high-profile speakers including [[Walter Walker (British Army officer)|General Sir Walter Walker]], [[Andrew Hunter (British politician)|Andrew Hunter]] MP, [[Alfred Sherman|Sir Alfred Sherman]] and [[Harvey Ward (director-general)|Harvey Ward]].<ref>''Labour Research'', November 1988, p.2.</ref> Hunter and Ward both gave considerable detail to the meeting concerning top-level links between the IRA and ANC.<ref>''Young European'' Newsletter, December 1988 edition, published by [[Western Goals (UK)]], London.</ref>

Having won first place in the ballot for Private Members' Bills, Smyth successfully introduced the Disabled Persons (Northern Ireland) Bill to afford disabled people in Northern Ireland analogous rights for disabled people elsewhere in the UK as provided for in the Disabled Persons (Services, Consultation and Representation) Act 1986. Smyth's Bill received [[Royal Assent]] in 1989.

== Unsuccessful leadership bid==

Smyth [[September 1995 Ulster Unionist Party leadership election|ran for the leadership of the UUP]] in 1995 after [[James Molyneaux]] stood down but lost to [[David Trimble]]. He was opposed to the [[Belfast Agreement|Good Friday Agreement]] but was considered a moderate in the early 1990s.{{cn|date=October 2023}} He was condemned in 1993 by the [[Democratic Unionist Party]] for suggesting that talks with [[Sinn Féin]] might be possible.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/687810.stm Martin Smyth: A hardline challenger?] BBC News, 23 March 2000</ref> He challenged Trimble for the [[2000 Ulster Unionist Party leadership election|party leadership in 2000]] and was again unsuccessful.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/2053125.stm Rev Martin Smyth] BBC News, 21 October 2002</ref> He was unsuccessfully challenged for the UUP nomination in Belfast South by [[Michael McGimpsey]]<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/1174624.stm Smyth wins UUP selection battle] BBC News, 16 February 2001</ref> before the [[2001 United Kingdom general election|2001 general election]], and went on to hold the seat. In 2001 he was elected to the position of UUP president. In 2003, he, along with [[David Burnside]] and [[Jeffrey Donaldson]], resigned the party whip<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/3185261.stm MP warns of UUP crisis] BBC News, 27 August 2003</ref> due to disagreements over the British Irish Declaration of 2003.<ref>[http://www.4ni.co.uk/northern_ireland_news.asp?id=17757 Trimble calls emergency meeting of sundered UUP] 4NI, 25 June 2003</ref> In January 2004, Smyth and Burnside retook the UUP whip.<ref>[http://www.4ni.co.uk/northern_ireland_news.asp?id=24261 Burnside and Smyth resume UUP Whip] 4NI, 12 January 2004</ref> Later that year he lost the party presidency in the annual election at the [[Ulster Unionist Council]], polling 329 votes to [[Dennis Rogan, Baron Rogan|Lord Rogan]], who won with 407 votes.

==Later political career==

In January 2005, Smyth announced he would be stepping down from Westminster at the next election to spend more time with his wife. He ended his House of Commons career in May 2005. During the election Smyth courted controversy when he and former Ulster Unionist leader Molyneaux appeared in a photograph with [[Democratic Unionist Party]] candidate [[Jimmy Spratt (politician)|Jimmy Spratt]] on Spratt's election literature.<ref name=autogenerated1>Kerr, Michael ''David Trimble and the 2005 General election'', Dublin (2005) pg 58</ref> Smyth denied endorsing Spratt stating:

{{Cquote|''People take pictures of me and they turn up in different places. I didn't sign any form, I didn't go out canvassing, but I was out canvassing with the only two unionist candidates who asked me.''<ref>{{cite book | last = Kerr | first = Michael | title =  Transforming Unionism: David Trimble and the 2005 General election | publisher = Irish Academic Press | date = December 2005 | pages = 58 | isbn = 978-0-7165-3389-4}}</ref>}}

The candidates Smyth did canvass for were [[David Burnside]] in [[South Antrim (UK Parliament constituency)|South Antrim]] and Rodney McCune in [[North Antrim (UK Parliament constituency)|North Antrim]].<ref name=autogenerated1 /> In the event neither Unionist candidate won in South Belfast, with the seat being taken by the [[Social Democratic and Labour Party]]'s [[Alasdair McDonnell]] amidst a unionist vote split.<ref>[http://www.ark.ac.uk/elections/asb.htm South Belfast] ARK – Access Research Knowledge</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{Hansard-contribs | reverend-martin-smyth | Martin Smyth }}
* [http://www.ark.ac.uk/elections/csb.htm South Belfast election results] ARK – Access Research Knowledge

{{S-start}}
{{s-par|ni/cc}}
{{s-new | Convention}}
{{s-ttl
  | title  = Member for [[Belfast South (Assembly constituency)|Belfast South]]
  | years = 1975–1976
}}
{{s-non | reason = Convention dissolved }}

{{S-par|uk}}
{{Succession box
 | title  = [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Member of Parliament]] for [[Belfast South (UK Parliament constituency)|Belfast South]]
 | before = [[Robert Bradford (Northern Irish politician)|Robert Bradford]]
 | after = [[Alasdair McDonnell]]
 | years  = 1982–2005
}}

{{s-par|ni/ass82}}
{{s-new | Assembly }}
{{s-ttl
  | title  = [[Member of the Parliamentary Assembly|MPA]] for [[South Belfast (Assembly constituency)|South Belfast]]
  | years = 1982–1986
}}
{{s-non | reason = Assembly abolished }}

{{S-ppo}}
{{s-new|party}}
{{s-ttl|title=Deputy Leader of [[Ulster Vanguard]]|alongside=[[Austin Ardill]] |years=1972–1973}}
{{S-aft|after=[[Ernest Baird]] and [[Lindsay Smyth]]}}
{{Succession box| before= [[Josias Cunningham|Sir Joe Cunningham]]| title=President of the [[Ulster Unionist Party]] | years=2000–2004 | after= [[Dennis Rogan, Baron Rogan|Lord Rogan]]}}
{{s-npo}}
{{Succession box|title=Grand Master of the [[Orange Institution]] of Ireland|years=1971–1996|before=[[John Bryans (Grand Master)|John Bryans]]|after=[[Robert Saulters]]}}
{{S-end}}

{{Ulster Unionist Party}}

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smyth, Martin}}
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