Margaret Ritchie, Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick
The Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick | |
|---|---|
Official portrait, 2025 | |
| Leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party | |
| In office 7 February 2010 – 5 November 2011 | |
| Deputy | Patsy McGlone |
| General Sec. | Gerry Cosgrove |
| Chairman | Joe Byrne |
| Preceded by | Mark Durkan |
| Succeeded by | Alasdair McDonnell |
| Minister for Social Development | |
| In office 8 May 2007 – 7 February 2010 | |
| First Minister | Ian Paisley Peter Robinson Arlene Foster (Acting) |
| Preceded by | Nigel Dodds |
| Succeeded by | Alex Attwood |
| Member of the House of Lords Lord Temporal | |
| Assumed office 5 November 2019 Life peerage | |
| Member of Parliament for South Down | |
| In office 6 May 2010 – 3 May 2017 | |
| Preceded by | Eddie McGrady |
| Succeeded by | Chris Hazzard |
| Member of the Legislative Assembly for South Down | |
| In office 26 November 2003 – 31 March 2012 | |
| Preceded by | Eddie McGrady |
| Succeeded by | Seán Rogers |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 25 March 1958 Downpatrick, County Down, Northern Ireland |
| Political party | Labour (2021–present) |
| Other political affiliations | Independent (2019–2021) SDLP (1980–2019) |
| Alma mater | Queen's University Belfast |
| Website | Official website |
Margaret Mary Ritchie, Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (born 25 March 1958), is a Northern Irish politician who was the Leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) from 2010 to 2011. She was previously a Member of the Northern Ireland Assembly (MLA) for South Down from 2003 to 2012, and was the Minister for Social Development in the Northern Ireland Executive from 2007 to 2010. Ritchie was the Member of Parliament (MP) for South Down from 2010 to 2017. She became a life peer in 2019 initially as a non-affiliated member, and then from October 2021 as a Labour member.