John Hume

Social Democratic and Labour Party MP Foyle

Date of birth

18 January 1937

Political profile

Nobel Peace Prize winner John Hume is a former teacher and one of the highest profile politicians in Northern Ireland over more than 30 years.

He first came to prominence in the Civil Rights Movement in Derry in 1968.

He was one of the founder members of the SDLP in 1970, and became deputy leader in 1973, then leader in 1979, a post which he relinquished in November 2001.

He served as Minister for Commerce in the short-lived power-sharing executive of 1974, but declined to take a place on the Executive formed after the Good Friday Agreement.

He played a crucial role in helping to broker the IRA ceasefire of 1994, which came after six years of talks with Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams.

Ill health caused him to take something of a back seat during the last couple of years of his leadership, and he resigned his seat in the Northern Ireland Assembly in December 2000 to concentrate on his other duties, including his role as one of the province's three MEPs, which he has carried out since 1979.

The recipient of dozens of awards and honours recognising his contribution to the peace process, his greatest accolade was the Nobel Peace Prize, which was awarded jointly to him and David Trimble in 1998.

Contact

020 7219 3485

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