Duncan Shipley-Dalton is a former Unionist politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

 in Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

.

Born in Newport, Isle of Wight

Newport, Isle of Wight

Newport is a civil parish and a county town of the Isle of Wight, an island off the south coast of England. Newport has a population of 23,957 according to the 2001 census...

, Shipley-Dalton attended the University of Essex

University of Essex

The University of Essex is a British campus university whose original and largest campus is near the town of Colchester, England. Established in 1963 and receiving its Royal Charter in 1965...

 and Queen's University Belfast before becoming a barrister

Barrister

A barrister is a member of one of the two classes of lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions with split legal professions. Barristers specialise in courtroom advocacy, drafting legal pleadings and giving expert legal opinions...

. From 1994-98, he served in the Royal Irish Regiment.

Biography

Shipley-Dalton was a strong supporter of the Belfast Agreement

Belfast Agreement

The Good Friday Agreement or Belfast Agreement , sometimes called the Stormont Agreement, was a major political development in the Northern Ireland peace process...

. At the Northern Ireland Assembly election, 1998

Northern Ireland Assembly election, 1998

-Seats summary:-Details:Although the SDLP won the most first preference votes, the Ulster Unionists won the most seats in the Assembly. This has been attributed to several reasons, including:...

, Shipley-Dalton was elected for the Ulster Unionist Party

Ulster Unionist Party

The 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...

 (UUP) in South Antrim

South Antrim (Assembly constituency)

South Antrim is a constituency in the Northern Ireland Assembly.The seat was first used for a Northern Ireland-only election for the Northern Ireland Assembly, 1973...

. He initially aimed to be selected as the party's candidate in the South Antrim by-election, 2000

South Antrim by-election, 2000

Clifford Forsythe, the Ulster Unionist Member of Parliament for South Antrim, died on April 27, 2000, precipitating a by-election.-Candidates:...

, but later withdrew, claiming that the party leadership intended David Campbell to be their candidate. He endorsed Campbell, but announced his retirement from politics at the forthcoming 2003 election

Northern Ireland Assembly election, 2003

The second elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly, which at the time of the elections had been suspended for just over a year, were held on Wednesday 26 November 2003. Six members were elected by Single Transferable Vote from each of Northern Ireland's eighteen Westminster Parliamentary...

.

After standing down, Shipley-Dalton moved to the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, where he is an active supporter of the Democratic Party. In 2007 he received a Master in Public Administration (MPA) degree from Harvard University.

He returned to the UK in 2008 and now lives in Southampton.