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Belfast Willowfield (Northern Ireland Parliament constituency)
Encyclopedia
Belfast Willowfield was a constituency of the Parliament of Northern Ireland
.
. It was created in 1929 when the House of Commons (Method of Voting and Redistribution of Seats) Act (Northern Ireland) 1929
introduced first past the post elections throughout Northern Ireland.
Belfast Willowfield was created by the division of Belfast South
into four new constituencies. It survived unchanged, returning one member of Parliament, until the Parliament of Northern Ireland
was temporarily suspended
in 1972, and then formally abolished
in 1973.
Parliament of Northern Ireland
The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which sat from 7 June 1921 to 30 March 1972, when it was suspended...
.
Boundaries
Belfast Willowfield was a borough constituency comprising part of southern BelfastBelfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
. It was created in 1929 when the House of Commons (Method of Voting and Redistribution of Seats) Act (Northern Ireland) 1929
House of Commons (Method of Voting and Redistribution of Seats) Act (Northern Ireland) 1929
The House of Commons Act 1929 was an Act of the Parliament of Northern Ireland; its major provision was to abolish proportional representation for all future elections in Northern Ireland....
introduced first past the post elections throughout Northern Ireland.
Belfast Willowfield was created by the division of Belfast South
Belfast South (Northern Ireland Parliament constituency)
Belfast South was a borough constituency of the Parliament of Northern Ireland from 1921-1929. It returned four MPs, using the single transferable vote method of proportional representation.-Boundaries:...
into four new constituencies. It survived unchanged, returning one member of Parliament, until the Parliament of Northern Ireland
Parliament of Northern Ireland
The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which sat from 7 June 1921 to 30 March 1972, when it was suspended...
was temporarily suspended
Northern Ireland (Temporary Provisions) Act 1972
The Northern Ireland Act 1972 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that introduced direct rule in Northern Ireland with effect from 30 March 1972....
in 1972, and then formally abolished
Northern Ireland Constitution Act 1973
The Northern Ireland Constitution Act 1973 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which received the Royal Assent on 18 July 1973...
in 1973.
Politics
In common with other seats in south Belfast, the constituency was strongly unionist. The seat was generally held by Unionist candidates, although labour movement candidates often performed well and sometimes took the seat.Members of Parliament
- 1929 - 41: Arthur Black, Ulster Unionist PartyUlster Unionist PartyThe Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland...
- 1941 - 57: Harry MidgleyHarry MidgleyHenry Cassidy Midgley, PC , known as Harry Midgley was a prominent politician in Northern Ireland. Born to a unionist family in Belfast, he worked in the textile industry before joining the Royal Engineers during World War I....
, Northern Ireland Labour PartyNorthern Ireland Labour PartyThe Northern Ireland Labour Party was an Irish political party which operated from 1924 until 1987.In 1913 the British Labour Party resolved to give the recently formed Irish Labour Party exclusive organising rights in Ireland...
(1941–42); Commonwealth Labour PartyCommonwealth Labour PartyThe Commonwealth Labour Party was a minor political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded in 1942 by Harry Midgley, former leader of the Northern Ireland Labour Party , in order to pursue his brand of labour unionism....
(1942–47); Ulster Unionist PartyUlster Unionist PartyThe Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland...
(1947–57) - 1957 - 58: vacant
- 1958 - 69: William HindsWilliam Hinds (politician)William Sharpe Hinds was a unionist politician in Northern Ireland.Hinds grew up in Belfast, becoming the owner of an engineering business. He was also elected as an Ulster Unionist Party Member of Belfast City Council...
, Ulster Unionist PartyUlster Unionist PartyThe Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland... - 1969 - 73: Tom CaldwellTom CaldwellTom Caldwell was a politician, art dealer and interior designer in Northern Ireland.Born in Uganda, Caldwell moved to Belfast at the age of three. He studied at the Royal Belfast Academical Institution, then in 1941 joined the Inniskillings Fusiliers...
, Independent UnionistIndependent UnionistSee also Independent .Independent Unionist has been a label sometimes used by candidates in elections in the United Kingdom, indicating a support for Unionism, retaining the unity of the British state....
Election results
- At the Northern Ireland general election, 1933Northern Ireland general election, 1933-References:*...
, Arthur Black was elected unopposed.