Reg Empey

Reg Empey is a Northern Irish politician and life peer who has served as a member of the House of Lords since 2011. A prominent figure in unionist politics, he previously led the Ulster Unionist Party from 2005 to 2010 and served as a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly for East Belfast between 1998 and 2011. During his career, he held several ministerial roles in the Northern Ireland Executive, including Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Investment, and briefly served as the acting First Minister of Northern Ireland in 2001. A key negotiator of the Good Friday Agreement, he has remained active in public life, though he has expressed critical views on the impact of Brexit on unionism.