Jim Wilson

Jim Wilson (born 15 December 1941) is a Northern Irish unionist politician who was Deputy speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly from 2002 to 2007. A member of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), he was a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for South Antrim from 1998 to 2007.

Background Born in County Antrim, Wilson attended Belfast College of Technology before becoming a marine engineer. He was elected to Newtownabbey Borough Council in 1977 for the Vanguard Unionist Progressive Party, and joined the Ulster Unionist Party the following year. However, he resigned his position on the council in 1988. He was UUP General Secretary from the late 1980s until 1998.

Wilson was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly for South Antrim in 1998 and held his seat at the 2003 election. He retired from front line politics in 2007. In March 2007 he was reappointed General Secretary of the UUP.