William Wright (Northern Ireland politician)
Sir William Thompson Wright, CBE (born 1925) is a Northern Irish business owner and former Unionist politician.
Life[]
Wright grew up in Ballymena, and first came to prominence in the late 1950s, when he joined his father's company, the vehicle body building business Robert Wright & Son.[1][2]
Politics[]
In the 1970s, Wright joined the Vanguard Unionist Progressive Party, and was elected as its Chairman.[3] He stood for the party in North Antrim at the Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention election in 1975, and was elected.[4] He later followed the party leaders in joining the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), and was elected to Ballymena Borough Council for this new party at the 1981 Northern Ireland local elections,[5] He lost his seat at the 1985 election, and did not stand in 1989,[6] but was re-elected in 1993 and won again in 1997.[7]
Wright stood for election to the Northern Ireland Forum in 1996, but was not elected.[8] In 1998, he resigned from the UUP, and stood unsuccessfully in the 1998 Northern Ireland Assembly election as an independent Unionist.[9] He held his council seat in 2001, before finally standing down in 2005.[7]
Business[]
Outside politics, Wright took over the family business, moving it into the construction of buses, a process which saw it become the Wright Group, with Wrightbus as its best-known subsidiary.[1]
Honours[]
Wright was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2001 Birthday Honours for services to Industry and the community.[10] He was promoted to Commander of this Order (CBE) in the 2011 Birthday Honours for services to the Bus Industry.[11] Wright was then knighted in the 2018 New Year Honours for services to the economy and the bus industry.[12] He was awarded the Freedom of the Borough of Mid and East Antrim in Northern Ireland on 18 January 2019.[13][14]
References[]
- ^ a b "Company History", The Wright Group
- ^ Margaret Canning, "Wrightbus boss drives off with Belfast Telegraph's top business award", Belfast Telegraph, 28 March 2014
- ^ Ted Nealon, Northern Ireland: A Parliamentary Directory, p.227
- ^ "North Antrim 1973-1982", Northern Ireland Elections
- ^ "The Local Government Elections 1973-1981: Ballymena", Northern Ireland Elections
- ^ "Local Government Elections 1985 - 1989: Ballymena", Northern Ireland Elections
- ^ a b "Ballymena Borough Council Elections 1993-2011", Northern Ireland Elections
- ^ "1996 Forum Elections: Candidates in North Antrim", Northern Ireland Elections
- ^ "North Antrim", Northern Ireland Elections
- ^ "No. 56237". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 June 2001. p. 13.
- ^ "No. 59808". The London Gazette (Supplement). 10 June 2011. p. 9.
- ^ "No. 62150". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 2017. p. N2.
- ^ "Freedom of the Borough | Mid and East Antrim Borough Council". www.midandeastantrim.gov.uk. Retrieved 24 June 2021.
- ^ "Council to confer Honorary Freedom of the Borough on Sir William Wright CBE in January". www.ballymenatimes.com. Retrieved 24 June 2021.
- Businesspeople from Northern Ireland
- People in bus transport
- Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
- Members of Ballymena Borough Council
- Independent politicians in Northern Ireland
- Knights Bachelor
- Members of the Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention
- Ulster Unionist Party councillors
- Vanguard Unionist Progressive Party politicians
- People from Ballymena
- 1925 births
- Living people