Health Minister Mike Nesbitt has announced he is resigning as UUP leader, bringing an end to his second stint in the job. According to the BBC report . He will also not be standing at the 2027 Assembly Election.
He informed MLAs and party officers on Friday morning. It is understood he wants to remain as health minister until the next assembly elections in May 2027 but that decision will be down to his successor.He said several months ago that he would decide by January at the latest “in fairness to whoever might be coming in”. Nesbitt has been UUP leader since August 2024 and it was his second stint in the role. He won the contest in 2012, but quit in 2017 after disappointing assembly election results. Since then, Robin Swann, Steve Aiken, Doug Beattie and Nesbitt again have been handed the leadership unopposed with no noticeable upturn in the once-mighty party’s fortunes.
In his own statement announcing his resignation, Nesbitt said
“The next five-year mandate stretches to May 2032, the month I hope to celebrate my 75th birthday. That’s a commitment to full-time politics I just do not feel I can make. And I would not be comfortably seeking a vote knowing that privately I was intending to retire during the mandate. “I retook the leadership to do a short-term job of getting the Party match fit for the forthcoming election campaign. That job is now done so the time is right to select the politician who will lead us into the May 2027 polls, promoting our brand of confident, responsible unionism.”
The Party Chairman Lord Elliot has said
“We are deeply grateful to Mike for his decades of service and unwavering dedication to improving our society. As we enter 2026, we look forward to building on the strong platform he has created. Our next Leader will champion forward-looking Unionism – safeguarding Northern Ireland’s place in the UK while promoting prosperity, reconciliation, and a shared future for all.”
On the point of their next leader, the UUP now faces its first leadership contest since 2012 with both Jon Burrows and Robbie Butler expected to stand for the position.
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