DUP MLAs running again in Strangford

DUP MLAs running again in Strangford

30 March 2022

IT’S case of as you were for the DUP which has confirmed that its three sitting candidates in the Strangford constituency will be contesting the May Assembly election.

Crossgar’s Harry Harvey, former teacher Michelle McIlveen and Peter Weir will be aiming to retain their seats when voters go to the polls in just a few weeks’ time.

Elected to Newry, Mourne and Down Council in 2014, Mr Harvey is following in the political footsteps of his father Cecil and has represented the Strangford constituency as an MLA since 2019 when he was co-opted to replace Simon Hamilton.

In the Assembly, Mr Harvey has sat on the public accounts, education and agriculture committees, and helped shape key pieces of legislation.

A committed Christian, he is a strong voice for traditional family values. He is also a well-known vintage car enthusiast and is involved with various charity events.

Ms McIlveen — who is Stormont’s education minister and lives in Ballygowan — has been a Strangford MLA since 2007 and operates operates a full time constituency service in Comber with surgeries across Strangford.

She is also been in charge of the agriculture and regional development portfolios at Stormont and during her role as education minister, brought forward legislation which allows ‘young for 

year children’ to defer when they start school, invested an initial £4m to address the causes of educational underachievement among working class Protestant boys and introduced compulsory CPR training.

When in charge of regional development, Ms McIlveen established a coastal erosion forum to provide solutions for under threat coastal communities and advanced numerous road safety schemes around Strangford. 

Mr Weir has been an MLA for almost a quarter of a century and operates a full-time Newtownards constituency office, with surgeries in Scrabo, Westwinds, Ballywalter and Ballyhalbert.

When he was education minister, he delivered significant additional funding for schools, Surestart, Pathways, increased nurture unit provision and secured children’s return to school following the coronavirus lockdown.

In addition, he initiated a UK-first holiday free school meal payments and delivered Fair Start initiative tackling educational underachievement.

As chairman of the Assembly’s All Party Animal Welfare Group, Mr Weir secured the toughest animal cruelty regime in UK and has also progressed local educational, health, business, policing, community, infrastructure and road 

safety issues throughout Strangford.

Each of the Strangford candidate say they are campaigning under the DUP’s five point plan for a better Northern Ireland with the focus on fixing the NHS, growing the economy, maintaining world class schools, removing the Northern 

Ireland Protocol and helping working families.