Jeffrey Donaldson
Jeffrey Mark Donaldson was born on 7th of December 1962 in Kilkeel, County Down, in Northern Ireland. He is a politician and Member of Parliament for Lagan Valley belonging to the Democratic Unionist Party. He is best known for his opposition to Ulster Unionist Party during the Northern Ireland Peace Process from 1998 to 2003.
Political Career
In 1985, following the death of Raymond McCullough, Donaldson was elected in a by-election to the Northern Ireland Assembly to represent South Down. In 1996 he was the first candidate on the UUP list for the forum elections, which virtually guaranteed him a seat. This led to his selection in 1997, for the Westminster Parliament where he was elected as a member of parliament (MP) for the Lagan Valley constituency. In 1998 Donaldson was in the Ulster Unionists' negotiating team for the Good Friday Agreement. However, he walked out of the delegation at the end of the negotiations in protest at some of the arrangements, notably the lack of a link between Sinn Féin's admittance to government and IRA decommissioning. Donaldson was returned to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom in the 2005 UK general election and in 2007 was appointed to Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, making him the Right Honourable Jeffrey Donaldson MP MLA. Donaldson was appointed to government by First Minister Peter Robinson, and held the position of Junior Minister in the Office of the FM from 2008 to 2009. Following his re-election to the House of Commons in May 2010, Donaldson stood down from the Northern Irish Assembly, with Paul Givan replacing him. He was a member of the Public Bill Committee for the Defence Reform Act 2014.
Education
He attended the Kilkeel High School then Castlereagh College. He joined the Ulster Unionist Party and the Orange Order as a young man and later worked for the MP Enoch Powell.
Notable work
In 1985 he was elected aged 22 to the Northern Ireland Assembly, with the distinction of being the youngest person to win a seat at Stormont with a majority of some 15,000 votes.
Awards
In 2007 was appointed to Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, making him the Right Honourable Jeffrey Donaldson MP MLA.
