Joe Byrne

Joe Byrne (29 November 1953 – 30 December 2025) was a Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) politician who was a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly (MLA) for West Tyrone between 1998 and 2003, and again from 2011 to 2015.

Life and career Byrne was born on 29 November 1953 in Aghyaran, Castlederg, County Tyrone. After studying economics at Queen's University Belfast, Byrne became a lecturer in Business Studies at the Omagh College of Further Education. He also joined the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), and in 1993 was elected to Omagh District Council, becoming chairman in 1997.

In 1996, Byrne was elected to the Northern Ireland Forum representing West Tyrone.

He held his seat at the 1998 Northern Ireland Assembly election, In 2009, he was appointed Chairperson of the SDLP and was re-elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly in May 2011.

Byrne died on the night of 30 December 2025, at the age of 72. He had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease some years beforehand.