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06/02/2004
Former Ulster Unionist Party leader dies
A former leader of the Ulster Unionist Party has died following a short illness.
Harry West, 86, was leader of the Ulster Unionist Party from 1974-79 after succeeding Brian Faulkner when the party rejected the Sunningdale power-sharing arrangement.
A native of Co Fermanagh, he entered politics in 1954 after being elected as the Unionist MP for Enniskillen (1954-72) in the Stormont Parliament.
He eventually resigned as party leader in 1979 following a poor showing in that year's European elections, to be replaced by Jim Molyneaux.
Paying tribute to Mr West, UUP chairman, James Cooper, who was also his nephew, said: "Harry West was a great unifier of grassroots Unionists. That came from his farming background.
“He will be remembered for his unstinting commitment to the future of Northern Ireland and as an outstanding and distinguished Unionist.
"He was well-regarded as a traditional unionist, who represented not only his constituency but the whole of Northern Ireland at one of the most difficult times in recent history."
UUP leader David Trimble also paid tribute to Mr West. He said: "He was a distinguished member of the Stormont government, Minister of Agriculture and the leader of the Ulster Unionist Party at the time of its greatest crisis in 1974 on to 1979.
"He was a person who worked tirelessly for folk in Fermanagh, his own constituents, but also for the party as a whole."
Mr West married his wife Maureen in 1956 and the couple had seven children - William, Rosalind, John, Diana, Mary-Lou, Ronald and Rupert.
(MB)
Harry West, 86, was leader of the Ulster Unionist Party from 1974-79 after succeeding Brian Faulkner when the party rejected the Sunningdale power-sharing arrangement.
A native of Co Fermanagh, he entered politics in 1954 after being elected as the Unionist MP for Enniskillen (1954-72) in the Stormont Parliament.
He eventually resigned as party leader in 1979 following a poor showing in that year's European elections, to be replaced by Jim Molyneaux.
Paying tribute to Mr West, UUP chairman, James Cooper, who was also his nephew, said: "Harry West was a great unifier of grassroots Unionists. That came from his farming background.
“He will be remembered for his unstinting commitment to the future of Northern Ireland and as an outstanding and distinguished Unionist.
"He was well-regarded as a traditional unionist, who represented not only his constituency but the whole of Northern Ireland at one of the most difficult times in recent history."
UUP leader David Trimble also paid tribute to Mr West. He said: "He was a distinguished member of the Stormont government, Minister of Agriculture and the leader of the Ulster Unionist Party at the time of its greatest crisis in 1974 on to 1979.
"He was a person who worked tirelessly for folk in Fermanagh, his own constituents, but also for the party as a whole."
Mr West married his wife Maureen in 1956 and the couple had seven children - William, Rosalind, John, Diana, Mary-Lou, Ronald and Rupert.
(MB)
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