Ards and North Down Borough Council
Ards and North Down Borough Council is a local authority in Northern Ireland that was established on 1 April 2015. It replaced Ards Borough Council and North Down Borough Council. The first elections to the authority were on 22 May 2014 and it acted as a shadow authority, prior to the creation of the Ards and North Down district on 1 April 2015.
Ards and North Down Borough Council | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | |
| Type | |
| History | |
| Founded | 1 April 2015 |
| Preceded by | Ards Borough Council North Down Borough Council |
| Leadership | |
Mayor | Councillor Karen Douglas, Alliance |
Deputy Mayor | Councillor Craig Blaney, Ulster Unionist Party |
| Structure | |
| Seats | 40 |
 | |
Political groups | Executive (32) DUP (14) Alliance (10) UUP (8) Opposition (8) Green (3) Independent (4) SDLP (1) |
| Elections | |
Last election | 2 May 2019 |
| Meeting place | |
 Town Hall, Bangor Castle | |
| Website | |
| http://ardsandnorthdown.gov.uk | |
The district was originally called "North Down and Ards"[1] but the council was known as "Ards and North Down District Council".[2] Councillors on the transitional shadow authority (prior to the council's official creation) voted on 15 December 2014 to submit an application to the Department of the Environment to change the name to East Coast Borough Council with effect from 1 April 2015.[2] Negative public reaction to the proposed name prompted a rethink.[3] The district name "Ards and North Down" was not finalised until 2016.[4] The transfer of the borough charter from North Down Borough Council was delayed until after the district naming.[1]
Mayoralty
Mayor
| From | To | Name | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 2016 | Alan Graham | DUP | |
| 2016 | 2017 | Deborah Girvan | Alliance | |
| 2017 | 2018 | Robert Adair | DUP | |
| 2018 | 2019 | Richard Smart | Ulster Unionist | |
| 2019 | 2020 | Bill Keery | DUP | |
| 2020 | 2021 | Trevor Cummings | DUP | |
| 2021 | 2022 | Mark Brooks | Ulster Unionist | |
| 2022 | Present | Karen Douglas | Alliance |
Deputy Mayor
| From | To | Name | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 2016 | Carl McClean | Ulster Unionist | |
| 2016 | 2017 | William Keery | DUP | |
| 2017 | 2018 | Gavin Walker | Alliance | |
| 2018 | 2019 | Eddie Thompson | DUP | |
| 2019 | 2020 | Karen Douglas | Alliance | |
| 2020 | 2021 | Nigel Edmund | DUP | |
| 2021 | 2022 | Robert Adair | DUP | |
| 2022 | Present | Craig Blaney | Ulster Unionist |
Councillors
For the purpose of elections the council is divided into seven district electoral areas (DEA):[5]
| Area | Seats |
|---|---|
| Ards Peninsula | 6 |
| Bangor Central | 6 |
| Bangor East and Donaghadee | 6 |
| Bangor West | 5 |
| Comber | 5 |
| Holywood and Clandeboye | 5 |
| Newtownards | 7 |
Party strengths
| Party | Elected 2014 |
Elected 2019 |
Current | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DUP | 17 | 14 | 13 | |
| Alliance | 7 | 10 | 10 | |
| UUP | 9 | 8 | 7 | |
| Green (NI) | 3 | 3 | 3 | |
| SDLP | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| TUV | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| Independents | 2 | 3 | 6 | |
Councillors by electoral area
| Current council members | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| District electoral area | Name | Party | |
| Ards Peninsula | Robert Adair | DUP | |
| Joe Boyle | SDLP | ||
| Nigel Edmund | DUP | ||
| Edward Thompson | DUP | ||
| Angus Carson | Ulster Unionist | ||
| Lorna McAlpine | Alliance | ||
| Bangor Central | Karen Douglas | Alliance | |
| Stephen Dunlop | Green (NI) | ||
| Alistair Cathcart | DUP | ||
| Craig Blaney | Ulster Unionist | ||
| Wesley Irvine ‡ | Independent | ||
| Ray McKimm | Independent | ||
| Bangor East and Donaghadee | Mark Brooks | Ulster Unionist | |
| Gavin Walker | Alliance | ||
| David Chambers | Ulster Unionist | ||
| Janice MacArthur † | DUP | ||
| Bill Keery ‡ | Independent | ||
| Thomas Smith | Independent | ||
| Bangor West | Hannah Irwin † | Alliance | |
| Jennifer Gilmour | DUP | ||
| Marion Smith | Ulster Unionist | ||
| Barry McKee | Green (NI) | ||
| Scott Wilson | Alliance | ||
| Comber | Patricia Morgan † | Alliance | |
| Philip Smith | Ulster Unionist | ||
| Robert Gibson | DUP | ||
| Trevor Cummings | DUP | ||
| Stephen Cooper ‡ | Independent | ||
| Holywood and Clandeboye | Martin McRandal † | Alliance | |
| Rachel Woods ††† | Green (NI) | ||
| Vacant € | Alliance | ||
| Peter Johnson † | DUP | ||
| Carl McClean ‡ | DUP | ||
| Newtownards | Steven Irvine † | Independent | |
| Naomi Armstrong | DUP | ||
| Vicky Moore † | Alliance | ||
| Stephen McIlveen | DUP | ||
| Colin Kennedy | DUP | ||
| Richard Smart | Ulster Unionist | ||
| Alan McDowell | Alliance | ||
† Co-opted to fill a vacancy since the election.
‡ Changed party affiliation since the election.
€ Councillor resigned but vacancy unfilled
Last updated 31 March 2023.
For further details see 2019 Ards and North Down Borough Council election.
Population
The area covered by the new borough has 163,659 residents according to the 2021 Northern Ireland census.[6]
References
- "Ards and North Down Borough Council". The Belfast Gazette (7794): 33, notice ID 2462059. 15 January 2016.
- "New name signifies a new beginning for local Council". Ards and North Down Borough Council. 17 December 2014. Archived from the original on 12 January 2015. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
In the New Year the Council will formally apply for Borough status and will submit an application to the DoE to change the name to East Coast Borough Council with effect from 1 April 2015; until then the Council will be known as North Down and Ards District Council
- Glynn, Niall (15 January 2015). "Northern Ireland super council names spark controversy". BBC News NI. BBC. Retrieved 7 January 2016.
- "Change of District Name (North Down and Ards) Order (Northern Ireland) 2016". STATUTORY RULES OF NORTHERN IRELAND 2016 No.10. Legislation.gov.uk. 18 January 2016. Retrieved 15 June 2016.
- "[ARCHIVED CONTENT] Current review of district electoral areas" (PDF). webarchive.proni.gov.uk. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 September 2015. Retrieved 19 November 2017.
- "Northern Ireland Census". nisra.gov.uk. 2021.