Mike Nesbitt

Mike Nesbitt
Nesbitt in 2024
Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party
Assumed office
28 September 2024
DeputyRobbie Butler
Preceded byDoug Beattie
In office
31 March 2012 – 8 April 2017
DeputyJohn McCallister
Robin Swann
Preceded byTom Elliott
Succeeded byRobin Swann
Minister of Health
Assumed office
28 May 2024
First MinisterMichelle O'Neill
Preceded byRobin Swann
Member of the Legislative Assembly
for Strangford
Assumed office
5 May 2011
Preceded bySimpson Gibson
Assembly Private Secretary to the Health Minister
In office
21 April 2024 – 28 May 2024
Minister of HealthRobin Swann
Ulster Unionist Party spokesperson for the Economy
In office
25 May 2021 – 28 May 2024
LeaderDoug Beattie
Succeeded byColin Crawford
Committee history
Deputy Chair of the Committee for The Executive Office
In office
14 January 2020 – 4 May 2020
ChairColin McGrath
Preceded byDanny Kennedy (2017)
Succeeded byDoug Beattie
Chair of the Committee for The Executive Office
In office
25 May 2016 – 25 January 2017
DeputySandra Overend
Danny Kennedy
Preceded byhimself (as Chair of the Committee for the Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister)
Succeeded byColin McGrath (2020)
Chair of the Committee for the Office of the First Minister and deputy First Minister
In office
17 April 2012 – 30 March 2016
DeputyChris Lyttle
Preceded byTom Elliott
Succeeded byhimself (as Chair of the Committee for The Executive Office)
Chair of the Committee for Education
In office
31 January 2012 – 17 April 2012
ChairMervyn Storey
Preceded byDavid McNarry
Succeeded byDanny Kinahan
Commissioner for Victims and Survivors
In office
June 2008 – 17 February 2010
Serving with Patricia McBride, Brendan McAllister and Bertha McDougall
Preceded byPosition established (Bertha McDougall as sole interim Commisioner)
Succeeded byKathryn Stone (2012)
Personal details
Born (1957-05-11) 11 May 1957 (age 67)
Belfast, Northern Ireland
Political partyUlster Unionist Party
Spouse
Unknown
(before 1990)
(m. 1992; sep. 2020)
Children4
Alma materJesus College, Cambridge
Queen's University, Belfast
OccupationPolitician
ProfessionJournalist
Known forTelevision Presenter
Leader of the UUP

Michael Nesbitt, MLA (born 11 May 1957) is a Northern Irish politician and former broadcaster[1] currently serving as the Minister of Health since 28 May 2024. He has been the Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) since 30 August 2024 following his successful candidacy in the 2024 leadership election after previously serving in the role from 2012 to 2017.[2] Nesbitt has been a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly (MLA) for Strangford since 2011.[3]

Nesbitt was appointed as the Ulster Unionist Party's Economy spokesperson by Doug Beattie, and was briefly the private secretary to the Health Minister, Robin Swann, in preparation for him succeeding Swann.[4][5] Following Beattie's resignation as UUP leader on 19 August 2024, Nesbitt launched a successful campaign to succeed him.[2]

  1. ^ "'I could see myself getting old with Mike'" Belfast Telegraph, 29 February 2004; accessed 6 February 2009
  2. ^ a b "Nominations for UUP leadership close". BBC News. Retrieved 30 August 2024.
  3. ^ "Robin Swann becomes new UUP leader". BBC News. 8 April 2017.
  4. ^ "Strangford". UUP Live. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
  5. ^ "Robin Swann to step down as health minister when election called as possible replacement named". BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. 21 April 2024. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 21 April 2024.