Preceded by Esmond Birnie Profession Social worker Alma mater University of Ulster Education Ulster University | Children 2 Role Politician Political party Alliance Name Anna Lo | |
 | ||
Born 17 June 1950 (age 73)
British Hong Kong ( 1950-06-17 ) Spouse(s) Gavin Millar (m. 2010-12, div.) Party Alliance Party of Northern Ireland | ||
Marriage location Belfast, United Kingdom | ||
Unionists enraged over anna lo s united ireland comments
Anna Manwah Lo MBE (born 17 June 1950) is an Alliance Party politician in Northern Ireland. She was a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Belfast South from 2007 to 2016, and has been the party's president since 2016.
Contents
- Unionists enraged over anna lo s united ireland comments
- Feeney on anna lo s nationalist land grab
- Early life
- Political career
- Personal life
- Political views
- References
Feeney on anna lo s nationalist land grab
Early life
On 17 June 1950, Lo was born in British Hong Kong. Lo is of Cantonese-Chinese ethnicity.
Political career
Lo was elected to the Northern Ireland Assembly for Belfast South in the 2007 assembly election. She is the first (and to date only) ethnic-minority politician elected at a regional level in Northern Ireland, the first politician born in East Asia elected to any legislative body in the United Kingdom, and the first Chinese-born person to be elected to any European legislative parliament.
Lo stood as an Alliance Party candidate for the Northern Ireland Assembly and was elected in Belfast South in 2007. After her re-election in 2011, Lo was appointed as the chair of the Northern Ireland Assembly's Environment Committee. She used this role to influence the Local Government Bill. As a result of her amendments, the new Councils will have greater levels of openness and transparency as the audio of the main Council meetings will be recorded and Council papers will be placed online. She further improved the freedom of the press at the new Councils by ensuring that journalists and the public will be able to use social media during meetings.
She was selected as the Alliance Party's candidate for the Northern Ireland constituency in the 2014 European Parliament election. She won the best ever European election performance for the party.
Lo has been the target of racial abuse by Ulster loyalists and did not stand for re-election as MLA in 2016.
Personal life
Lo is a social worker and former chairperson of the Northern Ireland Chinese Welfare Association. She moved from her native Hong Kong to Northern Ireland in 1974, after meeting journalist David Watson. She spent her early years in the country working for the BBC and Royal Ulster Constabulary as an interpreter. In 1978, she started an English evening class for Chinese people in Northern Ireland.
She was awarded an MBE in 1999 for Services to Ethnic Minorities.
Political views
Lo has declared her preference for Irish unification. She describes herself as anti-colonial and has said the partition of Ireland was "artificial". The Alliance Party played down her remarks, with fellow Alliance elected representative Geraldine Rice expressing shock at her stance.
She expressed her outrage at First Minister Peter Robinson's defence of Pastor James McConnell, who was accused of making Islamophobic remarks.