website predecessor successor birth_place assembly imagesize party term_end birth_date term_start article_title constituency_am name
http://www.billyarmstrong.co.uk/ '' new creation '' sandra overend coagh , county tyrone northern ireland 150px ulster unionist party 2011 21 june 1943 25 june 1998 billy armstrong
 mid-ulster billy armstrong
billy armstrong

billy armstrong -lrb- born 21 june 1943 , coagh , county tyrone , -rrb- is an ulster unionist politician in northern ireland .
he served as assembly member for mid ulster from 1998 until 2011 , when he was succeeded by his daughter , sandra overend .
he was a member of the agriculture and rural development committee , the committee for enterprise , trade & industry and the committee of the environment .
in 2005 , he became the first ulster unionist candidate since 1983 to contest mid ulster in the westminster general election .
armstrong served as a part-time royal ulster constabulary reserve constable for fourteen years from 1975 until 1989 .
he is a member of brigh presbyterian church .
he is also a member of the loyal orange order , holding the position of honorary secretary of chambré 's volunteers l.o.l. 171 , and a member of the royal black institution where he currently holds the position of lay chaplain of tamlaghtmore red cross temperance r.b.p. 518 .
he has also held the positions of worshipful master , treasurer and secretary of this preceptory .
having first been elected in 1998 , armstrong is now one of the longest-serving members of the northern ireland assembly .
he currently serves as deputy whip of the ulster unionist party assembly group , and is the uup spokesman for social development .
in the 1998 assembly election armstrong polled 9 % of the popular vote , in 2003 9.7 % , and in 2007 10.8 % .
over the same period the uup vote decreased from 13.93 % in 1998 to 10.8 % in 2007 , a loss of 2,157 votes .
in september 2007 armstrong talked about the need for unionist unity , stating , `` i do not pretend that any merger with the dup is likely -- indeed it may not even be desirable -- but i do believe that for the sake of the unionist electorate , we should try to see if some kind of accommodation or understanding is possible . ''
this topic was also discussed by ulster unionist supporter and newsletter columnist alex kane .
following the revelation that conservative mp derek conway paid his son from his expenses to do no work , public interest in elected representatives ' expenses mounted .
it was revealed that billy armstrong had paid rent to his wife for his constituency office for a period up to 2007 .
armstrong 's office is a prefab , which stands beside his home , prospect house near stewartstown , county tyrone .
armstrong officially opened a second constituency office at 20 high street , moneymore on friday 6 march 2009 , although this office has been serving the constiuents of mid-ulster since 8 november .
