Issues

McLaughlin tipped as Speaker

The election of Sinn Féin’s Mitchel McLaughlin as the Assembly’s Principal Deputy Speaker is expected to lead to him succeeding William Hay as Speaker next year. McLaughlin, from Derry, was an MLA for Foyle between 1998 and 2007 and has since represented South Antrim. He is well respected in the House and was a long-standing member of the Public Accounts Committee.

William Hay has held office since 2007. Under an arrangement agreed between the DUP and Sinn Féin in 2011, the post of Principal Deputy Speaker was created for Francie Molloy, who was to become Speaker in 2014.

McLaughlin was elected to the role after Molloy’s election as MP for Mid Ulster. If elected as Speaker, he would become the first nationalist or republican to hold the position.

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