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Willie Hay, Baron Hay of Ballyore

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The Right Honourable
The Lord Hay of Ballyore
Official portrait, 2022
Member of the House of Lords
Lord Temporal
Assumed office
16 December 2014
Life peerage
3rdSpeaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly
In office
8 May 2007 – 13 October 2014
DeputyDavid McClarty
(2007–11)
Francie Molloy
(2007–13)
John Dallat
(2007–14)
Roy Beggs Jr
(2011–14)
Mitchel McLaughlin
(2013–14)
Preceded byEileen Bell
Succeeded byMitchel McLaughlin
Member of the Legislative Assembly
forFoyle
In office
25 June 1998 – 13 October 2014
Preceded byConstituency created
Succeeded byMaurice Devenney
Mayor ofDerry
In office
1993–1994
Preceded byMary Bradley
Succeeded byAnnie Courtney
Deputy mayor ofDerry
In office
1992–1993
Member of
Derry City Council
In office
15 May 1985 – 5 May 2011
Preceded byDistrict established
Succeeded byGary Middleton
ConstituencyRural
In office
20 May 1981 – 15 May 1985
Preceded byThomas Craig
Succeeded byDistrict abolished
ConstituencyLondonderry Area A
Personal details
Born(1950-04-16)16 April 1950(age 74)
Milford, County Donegal,Republic of Ireland
NationalityIrish[1]
Political partyDemocratic Unionist Party
Spouse(s)Doris, Lady Hay of Ballyore (née McMorris)

William Alexander Hay, Baron Hay of Ballyore(born 16 April 1950), is aDemocratic Unionist Party(DUP) politician, serving as a life peer in the House of Lords since 2014.

Hay served asSpeaker of the Northern Ireland Assemblyfrom 2007 to 2014, as well as aMember of the Northern Ireland Assembly(MLA) forFoylefrom1998to 2014.

He attendedFaughan Valley High School, Drumahoe, County Londonderry.An Irish citizen by birth, he has objected to previously not being deemed automatically eligible for British nationality.[2]This policy is due to be changed in 2024

Political career[edit]

Hay was elected toLondonderry City CouncilinNorthern Irelandin 1981 for theDemocratic Unionist Party.He served as Mayor in 1993 and Deputy Mayor in 1992. In 1996 he was an unsuccessful candidate in theNorthern Ireland Forumelection inFoyle.,[3]but was elected to theNorthern Ireland Assemblyin 1998. He is a member of the Northern Ireland Housing Council and theLondonderry Port and Harbour Commission.[4]and in 2001 became a member of theNorthern Ireland Policing Board.

Hay was electedSpeaker of the Northern Ireland Assemblyon 8 May 2007 following the restoration of devolution. He also is a prominent member of theOrange Order[5]andApprentice Boys of Derry.

On 6 October 2014, Hay announced his retirement from the Northern Ireland Assembly as both MLA and Speaker. The role of the Speaker had been taken on byMitchel McLaughlinin a temporary capacity in September 2014 because of Hay's ill health. However, in a letter read to the Assembly, he announced his retirement from the Assembly effective from 13 October 2014 in order to concentrate on returning to good health.[6][7][8]

In August 2014, it was announced that he would get alife peerageto sit in theHouse of Lordsand he opted to sit there as acrossbencher,despite being nominated by DUP.[9]Hay was ennobled on 16 December 2014 and took the titleBaron Hay of Ballyore,of Ballyore in theCity of Londonderry.[10]He subsequently sat as a DUP member.[11]

Nationality[edit]

Further information:British nationality law and the Republic of IrelandandIrish nationality law

Hay was born inMilfordin the north ofCounty Donegalin the north-west ofUlsterin 1950.[12][13]County Donegal, the largestcountyin Ulster, is one of the three counties in Ulster that is part of theRepublic of Ireland;the other six counties in Ulster make upNorthern Ireland.At the age of six, Hay moved with his family toDerry.[12]He is anIrish citizenwith anIrish passportbecause he refuses to pay a £1,300 UK naturalisation fee (and take the "Life in the UK" test) required for people, such as him, who were born in the Republic of Ireland but who wish to become aBritish citizen.[14]"I see myself as a British citizen living in Northern Ireland all my life. I have a right to British citizenship and a British passport. I am being discriminated against because I can't get my British passport," he told the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee at Westminster in April 2021.[15]In January 2024, aPrivate Members Billbrought forward byGavin Robinsonpassed, allowing people born in the Republic of Ireland after 1948 that have been living in Northern Ireland for longer than 5 years to register as British citizens. It is not known when the bill will become law.[16]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^Liam Clarke (8 July 2011)."Sinn Féin's Martin McGuinness to make it easier to be British".The Belfast Telegraph.Archivedfrom the original on 9 July 2011.Retrieved8 July2011.
  2. ^"- 'DUP man not allowed British passport' - Belfast Telegraph, 20 June 2018".Archivedfrom the original on 21 June 2018.Retrieved21 June2018.
  3. ^"Northern Ireland elections".Archivedfrom the original on 7 June 2007.Retrieved14 February2017.
  4. ^PersonnelArchived4 November 2006 at theWayback MachineLondonderry Port and Harbour Commissioners
  5. ^"Speaker misses out on the Twelfth.... to say I do".BBC News. 11 July 2010.Archivedfrom the original on 26 September 2021.Retrieved12 July2010.
  6. ^"NI Assembly Speaker William Hay to retire as MLA".BBC News. 6 October 2014.Archivedfrom the original on 14 February 2018.Retrieved21 June2018.
  7. ^"Assembly Speaker to stand down".Belfast Telegraph. 6 October 2014.Archivedfrom the original on 9 October 2014.Retrieved6 October2014.
  8. ^"William Hay retires as Speaker of Assembly".Newsletter. 6 October 2014.Archivedfrom the original on 8 October 2014.Retrieved6 October2014.
  9. ^"Karren Brady and Sir Stuart Rose among new life peers".BBC News.8 August 2014.Archivedfrom the original on 21 April 2019.Retrieved21 June2018.
  10. ^"No. 61081".The London Gazette.18 December 2014. p. 24538.
  11. ^"Lord Hay of Ballyore profile".Parliament.uk.Archivedfrom the original on 18 August 2016.Retrieved25 August2016.
  12. ^ab'Willie Hay campaign for British passport cited as DUP try to improve citizenship path for Donegal unionists' (The Derry Journal,29 January 2024).https:// derryjournal /news/politics/willie-hay-campaign-for-british-passport-cited-as-dup-try-to-improve-citizenship-path-for-donegal-unionists-4496503
  13. ^'Willie Hay asks about British Passports for Donegal unionists as British move to ease citizenship route for Hong Kongese' (The Derry Journal,31 March 2023).https:// derryjournal /news/politics/willie-hay-asks-about-british-passports-for-donegal-unuonists-as-british-move-to-ease-citizenship-route-for-hong-kongese-4087070
  14. ^"Irish-born DUP peer criticises Home Office's UK citizenship rules".The Guardian.14 April 2021.Archivedfrom the original on 14 April 2021.Retrieved14 April2021.
  15. ^Stephen Walker (14 April 2021)."Lord Hay: DUP peer 'discriminated' against in passport quest".BBC News.Archivedfrom the original on 14 April 2021.
  16. ^https:// bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-68105801.amp

External links[edit]

Civic offices
Preceded by Mayor of Derry
1992–1993 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly
2007–2014 		Succeeded by
Northern Ireland Assembly
New assembly Assembly MemberforFoyle
1998–2014 		Succeeded by
Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom
Preceded by Gentlemen
Baron Haye of Ballyore 		Followed by
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