Eric Smyth

Eric Smyth is a unionist politician and religious minister in Northern Ireland.

Smyth was first elected to Belfast City Council for the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) in 1981, representing 'Area F' which was equivalent to the modern wards of Falls, Clonard, Blackstaff and Shaftesbury. [ [http://www.ark.ac.uk/elections/73-81lgbelfast.htm Local Government Elections 1973 - 1981: Belfast] , Northern Ireland Elections] However Area F was abolished in 1985, and Smyth moved to the Court district electoral area which covered the Greater Shankill area. He was elected and held his seat at each subsequent election. [ [http://www.ark.ac.uk/elections/85-89lgbelfast.htm Local Government Elections 1985 - 1989: Belfast] , Northern Ireland Elections]

In the 1990s, Smyth's two sons were jailed on drugs charges. Following this, he spent considerable time campaigning against drugs, and in 2003 he joined European Cities Against Drugs. [Mary Fitzgerald, " [http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/imported/article894450.ece DUP man's 'drug-free' campaign] ", "Belfast Telegraph", 5 March 2003] In 1995 - 96, he served as Lord Mayor of Belfast, and during his term of office, he formally welcomed Bill Clinton on a visit to Belfast. [" [http://archives.tcm.ie/breakingnews/2003/10/20/story118110.asp Former Belfast Lord Mayor to retire] ", BreakingNews.ie, 20 October 2003]

At the elections to the Northern Ireland Forum in 1996, Smyth stood in West Belfast, but was unsuccessful, the list he headed winning only 4.2% of the votes cast. [ [http://www.ark.ac.uk/elections/96wb.htm 1996 Forum Elections: Candidates in West Belfast] , Northern Ireland Elections] However, he was indirectly elected, as being placed seventh on the DUP's regional list ultimately enabled him to take one of the party's two "top-up" seats. [ [http://www.ark.ac.uk/elections/96cands.htm The 1996 Forum Elections: Regional List of Candidates] , Northern Ireland Elections]

In September 1996, Smyth announced "I have started my boycott. I will not shop in any Catholic shop." He also claimed that "the President [Bill Clinton] stands for republicanism and is a supporter of it". [" [http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/imported/article1054908.ece I Will No Longer Shop With Catholics] ", "Belfast Telegraph", 7 September 1996] He reversed his boycott call a week later, describing his statement as "a bit hasty". [Elaine Lester, " [http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/imported/article787752.ece Smyth does U-turn on boycotts] ", "Belfast Telegraph", 16 September 1996]

Smyth stood in Northern Ireland Assembly election, 1998 in Belfast East, but was not elected. [ [http://www.ark.ac.uk/elections/anb.htm North Belfast] , Northern Ireland Elections] In the 2001 UK general election, he stood for the Westminster seat of West Belfast, but was again unsuccessful, taking 6.4% of the vote. [ [http://politics.guardian.co.uk/hoc/constituency/0,9338,-703,00.html Belfast West - Aristotle] , Guardian Unlimited]

In 2000, Smyth quit the DUP after he failed to win the party's nomination for the Lord Mayorality. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/772143.stm Battle on for top council post] ", BBC News, 1 June 2000] He was persuaded to return,Joe Oliver, " [http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/imported/article941625.ece Firebrand Smyth to retire - yet again] ", "Belfast Telegraph", 19 December 2004] but in 2003, he again announced that he was standing down as a councillor, in order to concentrate on his religious work. The following year, he decided to continue, [Ashleigh Wallace, " [http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/imported/article908420.ece Former Lord Mayor in council U-turn] ", "Belfast Telegraph", 28 January 2004] He then stood for the Lord Mayorality again, but was beaten by the Alliance Party's Tom Ekin on the casting vote of Martin Morgan, the previous year's Lord Mayor. He instead stood for the Deputy's election, but was defeated by Joe O'Donnell of Sinn Féin, this time on the casting vote of Ekin. Following this defeat, reports claim that he told Ekin "your hands are covered in blood, you shameless traitor". [Barry McCaffrey, " [http://www.nuzhound.com/articles/irish_news/arts2004/jun2_alliance_mayor.php Unionists in uproar as Alliance 'partners' SF] ", "Irish News", June 2 2004] Despite his strong opposition to Sinn Féin, Smyth ignored the DUP's policy stating that its members should have no contact with the group.

Smyth again announced that he was standing down as a councillor in December 2004, on this occasion in an interview in which he made some criticisms of Ian Paisley's leadership of the DUP, and in particular the placement of some former members of the Ulster Unionist Party in prominent party roles. He did not stand for re-election in 2005, and he instead focussed on his role as founder and Reverend of the Jesus Saves Mission Church, closely aligned with the Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster. [ [http://www.lisburn.com/churches/church-news-2007/open-air-gospel-meetings.htm Open air gospel meetings in Dunmurry and Seymour Hill] , lisburn.com] He left the DUP, and gave an interview in which he claimed that the unionist community on the Shankill Road did not want loyalist paramilitaries to give up their weapons. [Stephen Gordon, " [http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/imported/article982269.ece 'Shocking remarks' slammed by SDLP MLA] ", "Belfast Telegraph", 2 October 2005]

In 2007, Smyth spoke out against the DUP's implementation of the St Andrews Agreement. Following Paisley's agreement to stand down as Moderator of the Free Presbyterian Church, he stated that Paisley "has gone back on everything he ever preached and there was no way he could continue as leader although I do think he should have stood down years ago." [Alana Fearon, " [http://www.irelandclick.com/nbn/index.tvt?%5Fticket=KGSEAOWM4BEFURUSJSMAAQ4S7AKACK5IURYGIPTBAP0FBKLAFSEQ6QRFL1NA9NTGNMN9CHUTX6QFIQ0OMMTECYXIBHSI742EIOQL456DALONHHRGUU295AMAAQ6DALROBHSMWQRFO2MAAQ4AS66LQVJ&%5Fscope=NBN%2FContent%2FNews%2FHeadlines&id=1700&%5Fpage=&psv=20 U-turn forced Paisley to quit] ", "North Belfast News", 14 September 2007]

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