N Ireland First Minister loses UK parliamentary seat

By IRNA,

London : Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson lost his British parliamentary seat for Belfast East in one of the first surprise results in the UK elections.


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Robinson, who has recently been embroiled in a financial scandal concerning his wife, was defeated by Alliance candidate, Naomi Long, in a massive 22.9% swing.

It’s the first time the non-sectarian Alliance party has won a British parliamentary seat since its alliance with the Liberal Democrats.

The defeat does not have direct implication for his position as First Minister of the devolved power-sharing government but may affect his position as leader of the Democratic Unionists (DUP) and add to pressures for him to resign.

His wife Iris announced in December that she would leave politics and step down as an MP following reports that she suffered prolonged periods of mental illness before the emergence of allegations of financial impropriety.

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