Dr Edward Haughey - believed to have been Northern Ireland’s richest man – was killed in a helicopter crash in Britain last night.
Also known as Lord Ballyedmond, Mr Haughey was born in Kilcurry, Co Louth, in 1944 and educated by the Christian Brothers in Dundalk.He was the recipient of an OBE. His fortune, estimated at about £650 million, was built largely on Norbrook Laboratories, the pharmaceuticals business he established in 1969.
Norbrook was founded by Dr Haughey to manufacture veterinary medicines on his return from the United States, where he had been working in the sector. From a one-man start-up operation, Dr Haughey built the company into an industry leader. He was the first person to have sat in both the Seanad and the British House of Lords.
He was also closely connected to the Fianna Fáil-led Albert Reynolds government of the early 1990s and was appointed as the first chairman of the newly established Irish Aviation Authority in 1993.
In December 1994, as he was leaving office, Mr Reynolds appointed him to the Seanad as a Fianna Fáil senator. In 1997, he was reappointed by then taoiseach Bertie Ahern.
He attended the Seanad infrequently, on average about once a year, and spoke rarely, and only on Northern Ireland matters.
Dr Haughey was a supporter of the Conservative party in Britain, and his companies donated more than €1.5 million to the party in 2000 and 2001. In 2004, the Ulster Unionists nominated him to the House of Lords, where he took the title of Lord Ballyedmond of Mourne, the location of his Co Down estate. He was made a life peer by the then Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble.
At the time unionist sources said he had been very helpful to the party in the run-up to the Belfast Agreement, facilitating some meetings with other individuals.
Conservatives
He later joined the Conservatives. Vice-chairman of the Conservatives in Northern Ireland Julian Robertson said at the time: “Lord Ballyedmond is one of Northern Ireland’s most successful businessmen and we are delighted he is joining us.
“His decision to support the Conservatives was another indication that more and more people were questioning the future of the UUP.
“We now have a relatively stable political situation and with that comes the increasing realisation that there is more to politics than just devolution. Lord Ballyedmond realises that the two big parties dominate proceedings at Westminster.”
Dr Haughey had also been involved in a number of civil court cases in the last 20 years, and has taken libel actions against various newspapers.
He has also been embroiled in a number of planning rows, including an unsuccessful attempt to block the construction of a pipeline across his lands at Dungooley, Co Louth.
In 2006, an attempt was made to detonate a 70lbs bomb at a property owned by Dr Haughey on the Louth-Armagh Border.
The Real IRA were believed to have been behind the bomb.
He was chairman of Cumberland Breweries Ltd since 2008, chairman of Haughey Air Ltd since 2000, chairman of Corby Investment Ltd since 1998 and chairman of Norbrook Laboratories Ltd since 1969.
