Ivan Neill
1906 births | 2001 deaths | alumni of queen's university belfast | councillors in northern ireland | members of the parliament of northern ireland | members of the privy council of northern ireland | royal engineers officers | ulster unionist party politicians
Ivan Neill (1 July 1906–November 2001) was an Army officer and Unionist politician in Northern Ireland.
Early life
Born in Belfast, Neill studied at Ravenscroft National School and Shaftesbury Tutorial College before receiving a BSc in Economics from Queen's University, Belfast. Biographies of Members of the Northern Ireland House of Commons He ran a firm of building contractors in East Belfast" Obituary - Sir Ivan Neill", Belfast Telegraph, 7 November 2001 before joining the Royal Engineers as an officer in 1939. He served with the military until 1946, by which time he held the rank of Major.Political activity
In 1946, Neill was elected to Belfast City Council as an Ulster Unionist Party member, and two years later, he became an alderman, serving until 1950. At the Northern Ireland general election, 1949, he was elected in Belfast Ballynafeigh. In January 1950, he was made Minister of Labour, and was appointed to the Privy Council of Northern Ireland. In this post, he sometimes spoke against his Government's policy - for example, against the 1956 Rent Bill which permitted landlords to increase rents in order to improve properties, while in 1958 he was rebuked for making a critical speech on economic policy.Graham Walker, A History of the Ulster Unionist PartyHe held the post until 1962, when he became Minister of Education, then in 1964 he moved to become Minister of Finance and Leader of the House of Commons. He resigned the following year, feeling that he was being marginalised in favour of William Craig.
In 1964, Neill again took a seat as an alderman on Belfast City Council, this time serving for six years. In December 1968, he returned to the government as Minister of Development, then in March 1969, he was elected as the Speaker of the House of Commons.
The Official Irish Republican Army attempted to kidnap Neill, from his house near Rostrevor, in October 1971. They were unsuccessful, but in December, his house was burnt down in an arson attack.
The Parliament was prorogued in 1972. In March 1973, the British Government published its plans to replace the Parliament with the Northern Ireland Assembly. Neill resigned as a Member of Parliament and as Speaker. He was not replaced, and was therefore the last Speaker of the Parliament of Northern Ireland. He received a knighthood and withdrew from politics.
In 1995, Neill wrote an autobiography, Church and State. In this, he called on unionists to put aside their differences.
References
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Category: 1906 births Category: 2001 deaths Category: Alumni of Queen's University Belfast Category: Councillors in Northern Ireland Category: Members of the Parliament of Northern Ireland Category: Members of the Privy Council of Northern Ireland Category: Royal Engineers officers Category: Ulster Unionist Party politicians
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