Albert Glenn Barr

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(19 March 1942 – 24 October 2017) was a politician from

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry, is the second-largest City status in the United Kingdom, city in Northern Ireland, and the fifth-largest on the island of Ireland. Located in County Londonderry, the city now covers both banks of the River Fo ...

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

, who was an advocate of

Ulster nationalism Ulster nationalism is a minor school of thought in the politics of Northern Ireland that seeks the independence of Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom without joining the Republic of Ireland, thereby becoming an independent sovereign ...

. For a time during the 1970s he straddled both Unionism and

Loyalism Loyalism, in the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and its former colonies, refers to the allegiance to the British crown or the United Kingdom. In North America, the most common usage of the term refers to loyalty to the British Cr ...

due to simultaneously holding important positions in the

Vanguard Unionist Progressive Party The Vanguard Unionist Progressive Party (VUPP), informally known as Ulster Vanguard, was a unionist political party which existed in Northern Ireland between 1972 and 1978. Led by William Craig, the party emerged from a split in the Ulster Un ...

and the

Ulster Defence Association The Ulster Defence Association (UDA) is an Ulster loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in September 1971 as an umbrella group for various loyalist groups and undertook an armed campaign of almost 24 years as one of t ...

UDA

Initially a member of a general trade union, Barr first came to prominence at the very start of

the Troubles The Troubles () were an ethno-nationalist conflict in Northern Ireland that lasted for about 30 years from the late 1960s to 1998. Also known internationally as the Northern Ireland conflict, it began in the late 1960s and is usually deemed t ...

in 1969 when he was involved in an initiative to ensure Protestant workers did not join in strikes called by the

Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association The Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association (NICRA; ) was an organisation that campaigned for civil rights for Irish Catholics in Northern Ireland during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Formed in Belfast on 9 April 1967,Ronnie Hanna, ''The Union: Essays on Ireland and the British Connection'', Colourpoint Books, 2001, p. 74 He went on to join the

Loyalist Association of Workers The Loyalist Association of Workers (LAW) was a militant unionist organisation in Northern Ireland that sought to mobilise trade union members in support of the loyalist cause. It became notorious for a one-day strike in 1973 that ended in wide ...

in the early 1970s and from there became involved in the

(UDA). The loose associations of shop stewards that existed in Derry and the surrounding areas formed the basis of the UDA in this area. Barr served as Brigadier of the North-West Brigade of the UDA, which later became known as the Londonderry and North Antrim Brigade.H. McDonald & J. Cusack, ''UDA – Inside the Heart of Loyalist Terror'', Dublin, Penguin Ireland, 2004, p. 66

Politics

Around this time Barr also became involved in

politics Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

by joining the

(VPUP) and was elected to the

Northern Ireland Assembly The Northern Ireland Assembly (; ), often referred to by the metonym ''Stormont'', is the devolved unicameral legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliam ...

, which had been set up under the

Sunningdale Agreement The Sunningdale Agreement was an attempt to establish a power-sharing Northern Ireland Executive and a cross-border Council of Ireland. The agreement was signed by the British and Irish government in Sunningdale, Berkshire, on 9 December 1 ...

, in 1973. As a result, Barr was the only UDA member to serve in either of the two bodies elected in Northern Ireland following the collapse of the Stormont Parliament. However, according to Ian S. Wood it had been Barr's profile as a trade unionist and community worker, rather than any UDA connections, that had won him the election. He soon became a leading figure in the opposition to Sunningdale agreement and effectively led the

Ulster Workers' Council strike The Ulster Workers' Council (UWC) strike was a general strike that took place in Northern Ireland between 15 May and 28 May 1974, during "the Troubles". The strike was called by Unionism in Ireland, unionists who were against the Sunningdale Ag ...

that brought about the collapse of the new power-sharing government. Barr was chairman of the Ulster Loyalist Central Co-ordinating Committee, a group containing

Ulster Workers' Council The Ulster Workers' Council was a loyalist workers' organisation set up in Northern Ireland in 1974 as a more formalised successor to the Loyalist Association of Workers (LAW). It was formed by shipyard union leader Harry Murray and initially fa ...

representatives, politicians and paramilitaries that directed the strike. He would later comment that it would have been feasible to establish a provisional government for an independent Northern Ireland from this body.W.D. Flackes & Sydney Elliott, ''Northern Ireland: A Political Directory 1968–1993'', Blackstaff Press, 1994, p. 93 Always something of a maverick within Unionist politics, Barr served a three-month suspension from the

United Ulster Unionist Council The United Ulster Unionist Council (also known as the United Ulster Unionist Coalition) was a body that sought to bring together the Unionism in Ireland, Unionists opposed to the Sunningdale Agreement in Northern Ireland. Formation The UUUC was e ...

(UUUC) after endorsing the candidacy of Ken Gibson of the

Volunteer Political Party The Volunteer Political Party (VPP) was a loyalist political party launched in Northern Ireland on 22 June 1974 by members of the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF). The Chairman was Ken Gibson from East Belfast, an ex-internee and UVF chief of staf ...

for West Belfast in the October 1974 general election despite the

Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) is a Unionism in Ireland, unionist, Ulster loyalism, loyalist, British nationalist and national conservative political party in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1971 during the Troubles by Ian Paisley, who ...

John McQuade John McQuade (9 August 1911 – 19 November 1984) was a Northern Irish unionist politician. He was a professional boxer under the name of Jack Higgins. Career After serving with the British Army in Dunkirk and Burma, he was an Ulster Unionist ...

representing the UUUC. During his suspension Barr was part of a UDA delegation that made a fund-raising trip to

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

where they met with

Muammar Gaddafi Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi (20 October 2011) was a Libyan military officer, revolutionary, politician and political theorist who ruled Libya from 1969 until Killing of Muammar Gaddafi, his assassination by Libyan Anti-Gaddafi ...

. Barr claimed when he returned that Gaddafi, who at the time was funding the

Provisional IRA The Provisional Irish Republican Army (Provisional IRA), officially known as the Irish Republican Army (IRA; ) and informally known as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary force that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland ...

, had expressed a firm interest in providing money for an independent Northern Ireland. The trip however, on which Barr was accompanied by

Tommy Lyttle Tommy "Tucker" Lyttle (c. 1939 – 18 October 1995), was a high-ranking Ulster loyalist during the period of religious-political conflict in Northern Ireland known as "the Troubles". A member of the Ulster Defence Association (UDA) – the large ...

Andy Robinson Richard Andrew Robinson Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 3 April 1964) is an English rugby union coach and retired player. He was the director of rugby at Bristol Bears, Bristol until November 2016. He is the former head coach of Scotland ...

and Harry Chicken, was widely condemned by unionist politicians because of the purportedly left-wing nature of the Gaddafi regime whilst the same reason was used a basis by

Charles Harding Smith Charles Harding Smith (24 January 1931 – 1997) was a Northern Irish loyalist and the first effective leader of the Ulster Defence Association (UDA). An important figure in the Belfast-based "defence associations" that formed the basis of the U ...

to launch a

loyalist feud Sporadic feuds erupted almost routinely between Northern Ireland's various loyalist paramilitary groups after the ethno-political conflict known as the Troubles began in 1969. The feuds have frequently involved conflicts between and within the ...

against UDA leader

Andy Tyrie Andrew Tyrie (5 February 1940 – 16 May 2025) was a Northern Irish Ulster loyalist, loyalist paramilitary leader who served as commander of the Ulster Defence Association (UDA) during much of its early history. He took the place of Tommy Herr ...

, whose idea the trip had been. In the course of this feud, Harding Smith placed Barr under a death threat, although nothing came of this as the pro-Tyrie forces quickly dispatched the challenge of Harding Smith. When the VPUP split after leader William Craig suggested in the

Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention The Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention (NICC) was an elected body set up in 1975 by the United Kingdom Labour Party (UK), Labour government of Harold Wilson as an attempt to deal with constitutional issues surrounding the status of N ...

that he would consider a power-sharing arrangement with the

Social Democratic and Labour Party The Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP; ) is a social democratic and Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. The SDLP currently has eight members in the Northern Ireland Assembly ( MLAs) and two members of Parliament (M ...

Barr was one of the few leading figures to remain loyal to Craig rather than decamping to

Ernest Baird Ernest Baird (1930 – September 2003) was a Northern Irish pharmacist and unionist politician. Background Early life Baird was born in County Donegal in the Irish Free State but moved with his family to Belfast at an early age. Career A pharmac ...

United Ulster Unionist Party The United Ulster Unionist Party (UUUP) was a unionist political party which existed in Northern Ireland between 1975 and 1984. It emerged from a division in the Vanguard Unionist Progressive Party in the late 1970s. Vanguard had traditionall ...

. When the UDA intimated that it did not back Craig's position either Barr tendered his resignation from the paramilitary group. Barr, who had exchanged angry words with

Ian Paisley Ian Richard Kyle Paisley, Baron Bannside, (6 April 1926 – 12 September 2014) was a loyalist politician and Protestant religious leader from Northern Ireland who served as leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) from 1971 to 2008 and ...

on a few occasions when both men were central to the 1974 strike, publicly distanced himself from the attempted strike organised by Paisley's United Unionist Action Council in 1977. Along with

David Trimble William David Trimble, Baron Trimble, (15 October 1944 – 25 July 2022) was a Northern Irish politician who was the inaugural First Minister of Northern Ireland from 1998 to 2002 and leader of the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) from 1995 to 20 ...

he became deputy leader of the Vanguard and held this position until the party dissolution in 1978. He, however, did not follow Craig in joining the

Ulster Unionist Party The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a Unionism in Ireland, unionist political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded as the Ulster Unionist Council in 1905, emerging from the Irish Unionist Alliance in Ulster. Under Edward Carson, it l ...

and instead returned to his UDA roots.

Return to UDA activity

Barr had been invited back into the UDA after the failure of the second strike, with a feeling within the movement that he had been proven right with his opposition to the failed initiative and so would be an asset politically to the movement. Following the collapse of Vanguard Barr returned to a leading position in the UDA, becoming involved in the

New Ulster Political Research Group The Ulster Political Research Group is an advisory body connected to the Ulster Defence Association (UDA), providing advice to them on political matters. The group was permanently founded in January 2002, and is largely a successor to the Ulster ...

(NUPRG). Whilst there, Barr took a leading role in the production of ''Beyond the Religious Divide'', a document which sought to set out a framework for a move towards eventual independence for Northern Ireland. Barr became increasingly disillusioned with what he saw as the callousness of unionist politicians towards their electorate, and the blind loyalty of that electorate. He commented: "They could have sent a

donkey The donkey or ass is a domesticated equine. It derives from the African wild ass, ''Equus africanus'', and may be classified either as a subspecies thereof, ''Equus africanus asinus'', or as a separate species, ''Equus asinus''. It was domes ...

with a

Union Jack The Union Jack or Union Flag is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. The Union Jack was also used as the official flag of several British colonies and dominions before they adopted their own national flags. It is sometimes a ...

tied to its tail up the

Shankill Road The Shankill Road () is one of the main roads leading through West Belfast, in Northern Ireland. It runs through the working-class, predominantly loyalist, area known as the Shankill. The road stretches westwards for about from central Belfast ...

, and we would have voted for it."Hanna, ''The Union'', pp. 75–76 Barr was also chosen to break the self-imposed media blackout adopted by the NUPRG in late 1978 when he gave an interview to the Irish political magazine ''

Magill ''Magill'' was an Irish politics and current affairs magazine founded by Vincent Browne and others in 1977. ''Magill'' specialised in investigative articles and colourful reportage by journalists such as Eamonn McCann (who wrote its anonymous ...

'' during which he put forward the case for independence. The UDA, however, failed to recommend the proposals to its members and, as a result, Barr drifted away from the NUPRG, leaving politics altogether in 1981 to return to community work in Derry. Barr also had a somewhat fractious relationship with the NUPRG's chairman

John McMichael John McMichael (9 January 1948 – 22 December 1987) was a Northern Irish loyalist who rose to become the most prominent and charismatic figure within the Ulster Defence Association (UDA) as the Deputy Commander and leader of its South Belfa ...

and following Barr's retirement McMichael changed the group, abandoning Barr's pet project of establishing a cross-community Northern Ireland Negotiated Independence Association, and instead set up the

Ulster Loyalist Democratic Party Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); the remaining three are in the Republic of ...

Later years

Barr set up a scheme for disadvantaged young people by which they would receive low-wage employment and training under the government ACE scheme (later called the

New Deal The New Deal was a series of wide-reaching economic, social, and political reforms enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1938, in response to the Great Depression in the United States, Great Depressi ...

). Both Barr and Paddy Doherty, who established a similar scheme in the Catholic

Bogside The Bogside is a neighbourhood outside the city walls of Derry, Northern Ireland. The large gable-wall murals by the Bogside Artists, Free Derry Corner and the Gasyard Féile (an annual music and arts festival held in a former gasyard) are ...

area, would eventually face criticism for what became known colloquially "ACE empires" as both employed very high numbers of youths on these poorly paid training schemes. Barr briefly emerged from his political retirement in 1994 when he joined his old friend from the strike

in heading up an initiative to gain funding for the

Ulster Democratic Party The Ulster Democratic Party (UDP) was a small Ulster loyalism, loyalist political party in Northern Ireland. It was established in June 1981 as the Ulster Loyalist Democratic Party by the Ulster Defence Association (UDA), to replace the New Ulst ...

. He appeared set for a more active return in 1998 when he took up a seat on the

Parades Commission The Parades Commission is a quasi-judicial non-departmental public body responsible for placing restrictions on any parades in Northern Ireland it deems contentious or offensive. It is composed of seven members, all of whom are appointed by the ...

, a move roundly condemned by

nationalists Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation, Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Theory, Id ...

, given Barr's UDA past, and one that saw resignations from the board in protest. Ultimately, however, Barr himself resigned on 24 April 1998, along with loyalist Tommy Cheevers not long after the Commission had banned an Apprentice Boys parade from the nationalist lower

Ormeau Road Ormeau Road is a road in south Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland. Ormeau Park is adjacent to it. It forms part of the A24. History The road, as currently laid out, dates from the first decades of the 19th century when a bridge was buil ...

. Barr continued to work on community projects in Derry, running the Maydown Youth Training Project Ltd, which seeks to alleviate the high levels of unemployment amongst the young in the Derry. He had also worked closely with

Paddy Harte Patrick Harte (26 July 1931 – 8 January 2018) was an Irish Fine Gael politician who served for 36 years as Teachta Dála (TD) for Donegal North-East. Early life and family He was born in 1931 in Lifford, County Donegal. His son, Jimmy Hart ...

, a former

Irish Government The Government of Ireland () is the executive authority of Ireland, headed by the , the head of government. The government – also known as the cabinet – is composed of ministers, each of whom must be a member of the , which consists of ...

minister, on promoting awareness of

Irish Catholic Irish Catholics () are an ethnoreligious group native to Ireland, defined by their adherence to Catholic Christianity and their shared Irish ethnic, linguistic, and cultural heritage.The term distinguishes Catholics of Irish descent, particul ...

participation in both World Wars.

Death

Barr died at Altnagelvin hospital on 24 October 2017 at the age of 75. DUP MP Gregory Campbell paid tribute to him and the hard work he carried out in the community.

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( ; ; ) is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The History of Sinn Féin, original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffit ...

Elisha McCallion Elisha McCallion (; born 21 October 1982) is an Irish former Sinn Féin politician who served as a Senator for the Industrial and Commercial Panel from April 2020 until October 2020. She previously served as Mayor of Derry from 2015 to 2016, a ...

described him as being "on a journey of reconciliation" and expressed her sorrow at his passing.

leader

Colum Eastwood Colum Eastwood (born 30 April 1983) is an Irish nationalism, Irish nationalist politician who served as Social Democratic and Labour Party, Leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) from 2015 to 2024. He has served as the Member o ...

praised his dedication to peace and reconciliation. He was interred in Altnagelvin cemetery after a service at Ebrington Presbyterian church in Derry. He was married to Isa, with whom he had four children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barr, Glen 1942 births 2017 deaths Members of the Northern Ireland Assembly 1973–1974 Members of the Northern Ireland Constitutional Convention Officers of the Order of the British Empire Politicians from Derry (city) Ulster nationalists Vanguard Unionist Progressive Party politicians Ulster Defence Association members