Edwin Poots

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Edwin Poots (born 27 May 1965) is a British politician from Northern Ireland, serving as Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly since February 2024. He served as leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) from May to June 2021. He was first elected as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) in 1998. In 2007, First Minister Ian Paisley appointed Poots to the Northern Ireland Executive as Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure. Poots left office after Peter Robinson became First Minister in 2008. In 2009, Poots returned to the Executive as Minister of the Environment, before being promoted to Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety in 2011. He was removed as Health Minister in 2014. In January 2020, he was reappointed to the Executive by First Minister Arlene Foster as Minister of Agriculture, Environment, and Rural Affairs, a position that he held until October 2022. After Foster resigned as DUP leader in 2021, Poots was elected as her successor, defeating Sir Jeffrey Donaldson. However, less than three weeks later, on 17 June, following controversy over his decision to nominate Paul Givan to be First Minister, Poots announced that he had requested a new leadership contest and that he would remain in post until a successor was appointed. Donaldson succeeded Poots on 30 June 2021. Following the death of his friend Christopher Stalford, it was announced on 7 March 2022 that Poots would be co-opted to fill the Belfast South Assembly seat, and run in the 2022 Assembly election, leaving a vacancy in Lagan Valley.