David Cook (Northern Ireland politician)

David Somerville Cook (25 January 1944 – 19 September 2020) was an English-born solicitor and politician. He was a founding member of the non-sectarian, liberal-centre Alliance Party in Northern Ireland. He served on Belfast City Council from 1973 to 1986, and in 1978 he became the first non-Unionist Lord Mayor of Belfast since 1898. He was elected as a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly of 1982 and served on that body until its abolishment in 1986. He was appointed Chair of the Police Authority of Northern Ireland in 1994 and held that position until his resignation from the role in 1996.

David Cook
Northern Ireland Assembly (1982)
In office 1982–1986
Constituency	Belfast South
Lord Mayor of Belfast
In office 1978–1979
Preceded by	James Stewart
Succeeded by	Billy Bell
Deputy Leader of the APNI
In office 1980–1984
Preceded by	Basil Glass
Succeeded by	Addie Morrow
Personal details
Born	David Somerville Cook 25 January 1944 Leicester, England
Died	19 September 2020 (aged 76) Portadown, Northern Ireland
Political party	Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (APNI)
Occupation	Politician, solicitor

Early life

Cook was born on 25 January 1944 to Francis John Granville Cook and Jocelyn McKay (née Stewart)[1] in Leicester, England. As a child, he moved to Northern Ireland with his parents and sisters after his father was appointed headmaster of Campbell College in 1954.[2]

Political career

Cook worked as a solicitor, eventually becoming a senior partner at Sheldon and Stewart Solicitors.[3]

In 1970, Cook was a founder member of the Alliance Party of Northern Ireland (APNI),[4] a non-sectarian party,[5] while he was elected to the party's Central Executive in 1971.[6]

He was elected to Belfast City Council in 1973,[7] a position he held until 1985.[8] In 1978, he became the first non-Unionist Lord Mayor of Belfast since William James Pirrie, a Home Rule Liberal, in 1896–1898.[9]

He stood for APNI in Belfast South in the February 1974 general election, taking just under 10% of the vote.[10] He was able to improve to 27% of the vote at the 1982 Belfast South by-election.[11] Following this, he won a seat on the Northern Ireland Assembly representing Belfast South.[10]

In the 1983 general election, 1986 by-election and 1987 general election, he consistently won over 20% of the votes cast in Belfast South. He also stood for Alliance in the 1984 European Parliament election, but took only 4% of the vote.[10] From 1980 to 1984, Cook served as the Deputy Leader of APNI.[3]

In 1994, Cook became the Chairman of the Police Authority of Northern Ireland, but he was sacked from this role in 1996 after losing a vote of confidence.[12] After a critical account of his role in an internal row in that authority appeared in newspapers in 1998, he undertook a lengthy libel case which was ultimately settled out of court.[13] He subsequently sat on the Craigavon Health and Social Services Trust.[14]

Death

On 20 September 2020, it was announced that Cook had died after being diagnosed with COVID-19 during the COVID-19 pandemic in Northern Ireland.[15] According to his family, he died on 19 September 2020 at Craigavon Area Hospital.[2] He had suffered a stroke two years before.[16] He was survived by his wife Fionnuala, his sisters Alison and Nora, his daughter Barbary, his sons John, Patrick, Julius, and Dominic, and his granddaughters Romy and Imogen.[17]

References

1. "Cook, David Somerville, (born 25 Jan. 1944), solicitor; Senior Partner, Messrs Sheldon & Stewart, Solicitors, Belfast; Chairman, Police Authority for Northern Ireland, 1994–96; Lord Mayor of Belfast, 1978–79". Who's Who. Oxford University Press. 1 December 2018. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U11703. Retrieved 24 September 2020.
2. Madden, Andrew (20 September 2020). "Tributes paid to founding member of Alliance Party and former Lord Mayor of Belfast David Cook following death from Covid-19". Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 20 September 2020.
3. "Policing in Northern Ireland". Meathpeacegroup.org. Archived from the original on 6 February 2012. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
4. "Cook raps 'mean spirited unionism'". Belfast Telegraph. 11 February 1997. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
5. "Northern Ireland's sectarian parties punished by rise of the non-aligned". The Guardian. 15 December 2019. Retrieved 21 September 2020.
6. Dr Martin Melaugh. "APNI – Alliance Annual Conference 1971". Cain.ulst.ac.uk. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
7. "The Local Government Elections 1973–1981: Belfast". Ark.ac.uk. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
8. "Local Government Elections 1985 – 1989: Belfast". Ark.ac.uk. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
9. "A Chronology of the Conflict-1978". Cain.ulst.ac.uk. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
10. "David Cook candidacies". Electionsireland.org. Retrieved 28 November 2010.
11. Boothroyd, David. "Results of Byelections in the 1979-83 Parliament". United Kingdom Election Results. Retrieved 20 September 2020.
12. "Mayhew's dilemma in police watchdog crisis". Belfasttelegraph.co.uk. 23 February 1996. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
13. "Police Authority pair settle out of court". Belfasttelegraph.co.uk. 12 November 2001. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
14. "Why Alliance critics point accusing finger". Belfast Telegraph. 12 December 1996. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
15. "David Cook: Former Belfast Lord Mayor dies with Covid-19". BBC News. 20 September 2020. Retrieved 20 September 2020.
16. White, Laurence (20 September 2020). "David Cook was the voice of the middle political ground and an avid historian who became Lord Mayor". Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 23 September 2020.
17. "David Cook obituary: A trailblazing and courageous politician". The Irish Times. 7 November 2020. Retrieved 8 November 2020.