5th Northern Ireland Assembly

This is a list of the members of the fifth Northern Ireland Assembly, the unicameral devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) elected on 5 May 2016^[1] or subsequently co-opted are listed by party and by constituency.

5th Northern Ireland Assembly
← 4th Assembly 6th Assembly →
Overview
Legislative body	Assembly
Jurisdiction	Northern Ireland
Meeting place	Parliament Buildings, Stormont
Term	5 May 2016 – 25 January 2017
Election	2016 assembly election
Government	Executive of the 5th Assembly
Members	108
Speaker	Robin Newton
First Minister	Arlene Foster
Deputy First Minister	Martin McGuinness
Sessions
1st 12 May 2016 – 24 January 2017

Only the Democratic Unionist Party, Sinn Féin and an Independent Unionist participated in the 4th Northern Ireland Executive, which now comprised nine rather than 12 departments.^[2] The Ulster Unionist Party, Social Democratic and Labour Party and Alliance Party declined the roles they were entitled to, and under the Assembly and Executive Reform (Assembly Opposition) Act (Northern Ireland) 2016^[3] the larger UUP and SDLP formed the first official Assembly Opposition.

The Assembly convened on 12 May, electing the DUP's Robin Newton as Speaker.

Party strengths

Party		Designation	May 2016 election	Jan 2017 end
●	Democratic Unionist Party	Unionist	38	36
●	Sinn Féin	Nationalist	28	28
♦	Ulster Unionist Party	Unionist	16	16
♦	Social Democratic and Labour Party	Nationalist	12	12
♢	Alliance Party of Northern Ireland	Other	8	8
♢	Green Party in Northern Ireland	Other	2	2
♢	People Before Profit Alliance	Other	2	2
♢	Traditional Unionist Voice	Unionist	1	1
●	Independent	Unionist	1	1
♢	Independent[n 1]	Unionist	0	1
	Speaker[n 2]	None	0	1
Total			108
Roles at commencement: ● = Northern Ireland Executive (66); ♦ = Assembly Opposition (28); ♢ = Other opposition (13).

Notes

1. Jonathan Bell was suspended from the DUP on 18 Dec 2016.
2. Once elected, the Speaker relinquishes party affiliation.

Graphical representation

• 
  At election, 5 May 2016
• 
  12 May to 18 Dec 2016
• 
  18 Dec 2016 to end

This is not the official seating plan

MLAs by party

Party		Name	Constituency
	Democratic Unionist Party (36)	Sydney Anderson	Upper Bann
		Maurice Bradley	East Londonderry
		Paula Bradley	Belfast North
		Keith Buchanan	Mid Ulster
		Thomas Buchanan	West Tyrone
		Joanne Bunting	Belfast East
		Pam Cameron	South Antrim
		Trevor Clarke	South Antrim
		Sammy Douglas	Belfast East
		Gordon Dunne	North Down
		Alex Easton	North Down
		Arlene Foster	Fermanagh and South Tyrone
		Paul Frew	North Antrim
		Paul Girvan	South Antrim
		Paul Givan	Lagan Valley
		Brenda Hale	Lagan Valley
		Simon Hamilton	Strangford
		David Hilditch	East Antrim
		William Humphrey	Belfast North
		William Irwin	Newry and Armagh
		Carla Lockhart	Upper Bann
		Phillip Logan	North Antrim
		Gordon Lyons	East Antrim
		Nelson McCausland	Belfast North
		Michelle McIlveen	Strangford
		Adrian McQuillan	East Londonderry
		Gary Middleton	Foyle
		Maurice Morrow	Fermanagh and South Tyrone
		Emma Pengelly	Belfast South
		Edwin Poots	Lagan Valley
		George Robinson	East Londonderry
		Alastair Ross	East Antrim
		Christopher Stalford	Belfast South
		Mervyn Storey	North Antrim
		Peter Weir	North Down
		Jim Wells	South Down
	Sinn Féin (28)	Caoimhe Archibald	East Londonderry
		Cathal Boylan	Newry and Armagh
		Michaela Boyle	West Tyrone
		Linda Dillon	Mid Ulster
		Megan Fearon	Newry and Armagh
		Órlaithí Flynn †	Belfast West
		Michelle Gildernew	Fermanagh and South Tyrone
		Chris Hazzard	South Down
		Declan Kearney	South Antrim
		Gerry Kelly	Belfast North
		Seán Lynch	Fermanagh and South Tyrone
		Declan McAleer	West Tyrone
		Fra McCann	Belfast West
		Raymond McCartney	Foyle
		Barry McElduff	West Tyrone
		Philip McGuigan †	North Antrim
		Martin McGuinness	Foyle
		Oliver McMullan	East Antrim
		Alex Maskey	Belfast West
		Ian Milne	Mid Ulster
		Conor Murphy	Newry and Armagh
		Carál Ní Chuilín	Belfast North
		Máirtín Ó Muilleoir	Belfast South
		John O'Dowd	Upper Bann
		Michelle O'Neill	Mid Ulster
		Caitríona Ruane	South Down
		Catherine Seeley	Upper Bann
		Pat Sheehan	Belfast West
	Ulster Unionist Party (16)	Steve Aiken	South Antrim
		Andy Allen	Belfast East
		Rosemary Barton	Fermanagh and South Tyrone
		Doug Beattie	Upper Bann
		Roy Beggs, Jr.	East Antrim
		Robbie Butler	Lagan Valley
		Alan Chambers	North Down
		Jo-Anne Dobson	Upper Bann
		Ross Hussey	West Tyrone
		Danny Kennedy	Newry and Armagh
		Harold McKee	South Down
		Mike Nesbitt	Strangford
		Sandra Overend	Mid Ulster
		Jennifer Palmer	Lagan Valley
		Philip Smith	Strangford
		Robin Swann	North Antrim
	Social Democratic and Labour Party (12)	Alex Attwood	Belfast West
		Sinéad Bradley	South Down
		Mark H. Durkan	Foyle
		Colum Eastwood	Foyle
		Claire Hanna	Belfast South
		Daniel McCrossan	West Tyrone
		Patsy McGlone	Mid Ulster
		Colin McGrath	South Down
		Justin McNulty	Newry and Armagh
		Richie McPhillips	Fermanagh and South Tyrone
		Nichola Mallon	Belfast North
		Gerry Mullan	East Londonderry
	Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (8)	Kellie Armstrong	Strangford
		Paula Bradshaw	Belfast South
		Stewart Dickson	East Antrim
		Stephen Farry	North Down
		David Ford	South Antrim
		Naomi Long	Belfast East
		Trevor Lunn	Lagan Valley
		Chris Lyttle	Belfast East
	Green Party in Northern Ireland (2)	Steven Agnew	North Down
		Clare Bailey	Belfast South
	People Before Profit Alliance (2)	Gerry Carroll	Belfast West
		Eamonn McCann	Foyle
	Traditional Unionist Voice (1)	Jim Allister	North Antrim
	Independent Unionist (2)	Jonathan Bell ‡	Strangford
		Claire Sugden	East Londonderry
	Speaker (1)	Robin Newton ‡	Belfast East

† Co-opted to replace an elected MLA

‡ Changed affiliation during the term

MLAs by constituency

Constituency	Name	Party
Belfast East	Andy Allen		Ulster Unionist Party
	Joanne Bunting		Democratic Unionist Party
	Sammy Douglas		Democratic Unionist Party
	Naomi Long		Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
	Chris Lyttle		Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
	Robin Newton		Speaker
Belfast North	Paula Bradley		Democratic Unionist Party
	William Humphrey		Democratic Unionist Party
	Gerry Kelly		Sinn Féin
	Nichola Mallon		Social Democratic and Labour Party
	Nelson McCausland		Democratic Unionist Party
	Carál Ní Chuilín		Sinn Féin
Belfast South	Clare Bailey		Green Party in Northern Ireland
	Paula Bradshaw		Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
	Claire Hanna		Social Democratic and Labour Party
	Máirtín Ó Muilleoir		Sinn Féin
	Emma Pengelly		Democratic Unionist Party
	Christopher Stalford		Democratic Unionist Party
Belfast West	Alex Attwood		Social Democratic and Labour Party
	Gerry Carroll		People Before Profit Alliance
	Órlaithí Flynn †		Sinn Féin
	Alex Maskey		Sinn Féin
	Fra McCann		Sinn Féin
	Pat Sheehan		Sinn Féin
East Antrim	Roy Beggs, Jr.		Ulster Unionist Party
	Stewart Dickson		Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
	David Hilditch		Democratic Unionist Party
	Gordon Lyons		Democratic Unionist Party
	Oliver McMullan		Sinn Féin
	Alastair Ross		Democratic Unionist Party
East Londonderry	Caoimhe Archibald		Sinn Féin
	Maurice Bradley		Democratic Unionist Party
	Adrian McQuillan		Democratic Unionist Party
	Gerry Mullan		Social Democratic and Labour Party
	George Robinson		Democratic Unionist Party
	Claire Sugden		Independent Unionist
Fermanagh and South Tyrone	Rosemary Barton		Ulster Unionist Party
	Arlene Foster		Democratic Unionist Party
	Michelle Gildernew		Sinn Féin
	Seán Lynch		Sinn Féin
	Richie McPhillips		Social Democratic and Labour Party
	Maurice Morrow		Democratic Unionist Party
Foyle	Colum Eastwood		Social Democratic and Labour Party
	Mark H. Durkan		Social Democratic and Labour Party
	Eamonn McCann		People Before Profit Alliance
	Raymond McCartney		Sinn Féin
	Martin McGuinness		Sinn Féin
	Gary Middleton		Democratic Unionist Party
Lagan Valley	Robbie Butler		Ulster Unionist Party
	Paul Givan		Democratic Unionist Party
	Brenda Hale		Democratic Unionist Party
	Trevor Lunn		Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
	Jennifer Palmer		Ulster Unionist Party
	Edwin Poots		Democratic Unionist Party
Mid Ulster	Keith Buchanan		Democratic Unionist Party
	Linda Dillon		Sinn Féin
	Patsy McGlone		Social Democratic and Labour Party
	Ian Milne		Sinn Féin
	Michelle O'Neill		Sinn Féin
	Sandra Overend		Ulster Unionist Party
Newry and Armagh	Cathal Boylan		Sinn Féin
	Megan Fearon		Sinn Féin
	William Irwin		Democratic Unionist Party
	Danny Kennedy		Ulster Unionist Party
	Justin McNulty		Social Democratic and Labour Party
	Conor Murphy		Sinn Féin
North Antrim	Jim Allister		Traditional Unionist Voice
	Paul Frew		Democratic Unionist Party
	Phillip Logan		Democratic Unionist Party
	Philip McGuigan †		Sinn Féin
	Mervyn Storey		Democratic Unionist Party
	Robin Swann		Ulster Unionist Party
North Down	Steven Agnew		Green Party in Northern Ireland
	Alan Chambers		Ulster Unionist Party
	Gordon Dunne		Democratic Unionist Party
	Alex Easton		Democratic Unionist Party
	Stephen Farry		Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
	Peter Weir		Democratic Unionist Party
South Antrim	Steve Aiken		Ulster Unionist Party
	Pam Cameron		Democratic Unionist Party
	Trevor Clarke		Democratic Unionist Party
	David Ford		Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
	Paul Girvan		Democratic Unionist Party
	Declan Kearney		Sinn Féin
South Down	Sinéad Bradley		Social Democratic and Labour Party
	Chris Hazzard		Sinn Féin
	Colin McGrath		Social Democratic and Labour Party
	Harold McKee		Ulster Unionist Party
	Caitríona Ruane		Sinn Féin
	Jim Wells		Democratic Unionist Party
Strangford	Kellie Armstrong		Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
	Jonathan Bell ‡		Independent Unionist
	Simon Hamilton		Democratic Unionist Party
	Michelle McIlveen		Democratic Unionist Party
	Mike Nesbitt		Ulster Unionist Party
	Philip Smith		Ulster Unionist Party
Upper Bann	Sydney Anderson		Democratic Unionist Party
	Doug Beattie		Ulster Unionist Party
	Jo-Anne Dobson		Ulster Unionist Party
	Carla Lockhart		Democratic Unionist Party
	John O'Dowd		Sinn Féin
	Catherine Seeley		Sinn Féin
West Tyrone	Thomas Buchanan		Democratic Unionist Party
	Michaela Boyle		Sinn Féin
	Ross Hussey		Ulster Unionist Party
	Declan McAleer		Sinn Féin
	Daniel McCrossan		Social Democratic and Labour Party
	Barry McElduff		Sinn Féin

† Co-opted to replace an elected MLA ‡ Changed affiliation during the term

Changes since the election

† Co-options

Date co-opted	Constituency	Party		Outgoing	Co-optee	Reason
18 August 2016	North Antrim		Sinn Féin	Daithí McKay	Philip McGuigan	Daithí McKay resigned.[4]
7 December 2016	Belfast West		Sinn Féin	Jennifer McCann	Órlaithí Flynn	Jennifer McCann resigned.[5]

‡ Changes in affiliation

Date	Constituency	Name	Previous affiliation		New affiliation		Circumstance
12 May 2016	Belfast East	Robin Newton		DUP		Speaker	Robin Newton elected Speaker of the Assembly at its first sitting.
18 December 2016	Strangford	Jonathan Bell		DUP		Ind. Unionist	Jonathan Bell suspended from the DUP.[6]

References

1. "Northern Ireland Assembly election 2017 results". BBC News. Archived from the original on 3 June 2021. Retrieved 29 April 2017.
2. "Changes to government departments | nidirect". nidirect. 8 February 2016. Archived from the original on 13 August 2019. Retrieved 24 April 2017.
3. "Assembly and Executive Reform (Assembly Opposition) Act (Northern Ireland) 2016". www.legislation.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 7 March 2021. Retrieved 24 April 2017.
4. "Philip McGuigan is Sinn Fein's new North Antrim MLA after Daithi McKay resignation - BelfastTelegraph.co.uk". BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. Archived from the original on 25 August 2016. Retrieved 29 April 2017.
5. "Órlaithí Flynn becomes MLA". www.sinnfein.ie. Archived from the original on 18 September 2020. Retrieved 29 April 2017.
6. "RHI scandal: Jonathan Bell suspended from DUP". BBC News. 18 December 2016. Archived from the original on 16 April 2021. Retrieved 29 April 2017.

External links