2011 Belfast West by-election

2011 UK parliamentary by-election August 2012 January 2020 2011 Belfast West by-election parliamentary United Kingdom no 2010 United Kingdom general election 2010 2015 United Kingdom general election 2015 9 June 2011 File:Paul Maskey (cropped).jpg Paul Maskey Sinn Féin 16,211 70.6% 0.5 pp File:Alex Attwood 2015.jpg Alex Attwood Social Democratic and Labour Party 3,088 13.5% 2.9 pp File:Gerry Carroll 2016 (cropped).jpg Gerry Carroll People Before Profit Alliance 1,751 7.6% New party File:Brian Kingston MLA outside Parliament Buildings, Stormont (cropped).jpg Brian Kingston Democratic Unionist Party 1,393 6.1% 1.5 pp MP Subsequent MP Gerry Adams Sinn Féin Paul Maskey Sinn Féin A by-election for the United Kingdom parliamentary constituency of Belfast West was held on 9 June 2011, prompted by the resignation of the incumbent Sinn Féin Member of Parliament (MP) Gerry Adams to contest the Louth constituency in the 2011 Irish general election. It was won by Paul Maskey, who held the seat for Sinn Féin. Background Gerry Adams had held Belfast West for Sinn Féin from 1983 to 1992, and continuously since 1997.Gerry Adams resigns as West Belfast MP BBC News At the 1992 UK general election and in the 1974 and 1979 elections, the seat was won instead by the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), an Irish nationalist party, but by the 2010 general election, they were a long way behind Adams, the seat being the safest in Northern Ireland and the fourth safest anywhere in the UK.http://www.politicsresources.net/area/uk/ge10/maj.htm Constituencies in order of % Majority after the 2010 general election Politicsresources.net 13 January 2011 20 January 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20101218000522/http://www.politicsresources.net/area/uk/ge10/maj.htm 18 December 2010 dead A constituency of the same name, with boundaries identical to the Westminster constituency which existed before the 2010 election, was contested at the 2007 Northern Ireland Assembly election, using the single transferable vote method of election. Sinn Féin candidates won five of the six seats and the SDLP the other.West Belfast 2007, Northern Ireland Elections In 2010, the two main unionist parties, the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), both stood candidates in the seat, but took only 10.7% of the vote between them. The DUP did hold one of the six Assembly seats until 2007.West Belfast, Northern Ireland Elections Although the UUP have not held their deposit in recent years, they held the Parliamentary seat until 1966.West Belfast 1950–1970, Northern Ireland Elections Members of the House of Commons, whether or not they have taken their seats, cannot resign in form, but a legal fiction has grown up to allow Members to resign in effect. Under Section 4 of the House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975, if an MP wishes to vacate their seat, they can request appointment to either of two 'offices of profit under the Crown' which disqualify them from membership. As an Irish republican, Adams considered a British Crown appointment politically unacceptable, and therefore submitted a letter resigning his seat to the Speaker of the House of Commons on 20 January 2011;http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2011/0126/breaking42.html?via=mr Adams 'becomes baron' 26 January 2011 The Irish Times 26 January 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20110127040850/http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2011/0126/breaking42.html?via=mr 27 January 2011 live he maintained that by doing so he had simply resigned.Adams comments on Cameron claims Sinnfein.ie Notwithstanding that he had not requested it, Adams was appointed as Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead and officially ceased to be an MP on 26 January 2011; a Treasury spokesperson said that this appointment had been made "consistent with long-standing precedent". Although David Cameron said during Prime Minister's Questions that Adams had "accepted an office for profit under the Crown", Adams denied this and received an apology from the Prime Minister's Office for not informing him of the procedure and for stating that he had applied for the position.https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-12292896 Downing Street apology for Gerry Adams 26 January 2011 BBC Online 26 January 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20110201133240/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-12292896 1 February 2011 live In order for a by-election to take place, an MP makes a motion in the House of Commons to the Speaker to issue a warrant to the Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, who then issues the writ ordering that the election take place. Traditionally, the MP comes from the same party as the member that has stood down.http://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons-information-office/m07.pdf Microsoft Word - M07 - Parliamentary Elections.doc 28 May 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20110605103824/http://www.parliament.uk/documents/commons-information-office/m07.pdf 5 June 2011 live However, because Sinn Féin MPs do not take their seats in the Commons, the writ was moved by the Government Chief Whip, Conservative MP Patrick McLoughlin on 16 May 2011.http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/northern-ireland/goahead-given-for-belfast-poll-16000680.html Go-ahead given for Belfast poll – Northern Ireland, Local & National Belfasttelegraph.co.uk 16 May 2011 28 May 2011 Candidates Alex Attwood, the Environment Minister in the Northern Ireland Executive, and the Social Democratic and Labour Party's candidate for the seat at the 2010 general election was the SDLP candidate for the by-election.http://www.belfastmedia.com/home_article.php?ID=2370 (Andersonstown News) – The Candidate Belfast Media 24 March 2011 28 May 2011 Brian Kingston was the Democratic Unionist Party candidate.– DUP Nomination for West Belfast by-election, 24 May 2011 Paul Maskey, a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly, won the Sinn Féin nomination.https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-13369583 Paul Maskey 'wants to run for West Belfast' Bbc.co.uk 11 May 2011 28 May 2011 https://web.archive.org/web/20110512140726/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-13369583 12 May 2011 live Danny Morrison, the former publicity director of Sinn Féin, had suggested that the party should stand aside and instead back a candidacy for former Respect Party MP George Galloway.Martina Purdy, "Galloway to run for West Belfast?", BBC News, 21 January 2011 Results By-election 2011 Belfast West by-electionSinn Fein's Paul Maskey wins West Belfast by-election, BBC News, 10 June 2011Northern Ireland Elections, Northern Ireland Elections, 6 May 2018 Sinn Féin Paul Maskey 16,211 70.6 −0.5 Social Democratic and Labour Party Alex Attwood 3,088 13.5 −2.9 People Before Profit Alliance Gerry Carroll 1,751 7.6 New Democratic Unionist Party Brian Kingston 1,393 6.1 −1.5 Ulster Unionist Party Bill Manwaring 386 1.7 −1.4 Alliance Party of Northern Ireland Aaron McIntyre 122 0.5 −1.4 13,123 57.1 +2.4 22,951 37.5 −16.5 61,441 Sinn Féin +1.2 Previous General Election General election 2010: Belfast WestElection Data 2010 http://www.electoralcalculus.co.uk/electdata_2010.txt Electoral Calculus 17 October 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20130726162034/http://www.electoralcalculus.co.uk/electdata_2010.txt 26 July 2013 Sinn Féin Gerry Adams 22,840 71.1 +2.5 Social Democratic and Labour Party Alex Attwood 5,261 16.4 +0.3 Democratic Unionist Party William Humphrey 2,436 7.6 −3.3 Ulster Conservatives and Unionists Bill Manwaring 1,000 3.1 +0.6 Alliance Party of Northern Ireland Máire Hendron 596 1.9 +1.8 17,579 54.7 −1.2 32,133 54.0 −13.5 59,522 Sinn Féin +1.1 See also 1903 Belfast West by-election 1943 Belfast West by-election 1950 Belfast West by-election List of United Kingdom by-elections Opinion polling for the 2015 United Kingdom general election References External links A Vision Of Britain Through Time (Constituency elector numbers) Northern Ireland Elections Belfast West by-election Belfast West by-election West Category:21st century in Belfast Category:2011 elections in Northern Ireland