Chris Hazzard

{{Infobox officeholder

| name = Chris Hazzard

| honorific-suffix = {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|MP}}

| image = Chris Hazzard, November 2023 (cropped).jpg

| caption = Hazzard in 2023

| parliament = United Kingdom

| constituency_MP = South Down

| term_start1 = 8 June 2017

| term_end1 =

| majority1 = 9,280 (20.5%)

| predecessor1 = Margaret Ritchie

| successor1 =

| office2 = Member of the Legislative Assembly
for South Down

| assembly2 = Northern Ireland

| term_start2 = 13 April 2012

| term_end2 = 9 June 2017

| predecessor2 = Willie Clarke

| successor2 = Emma Rogan

| office3 = Minister for Infrastructure

| term_start3 = 25 May 2016

| term_end3 = 26 January 2017

| predecessor3 = Michelle McIlveen

| successor3 = Nichola Mallon

| birth_name = Christopher John Hazzard

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|df=yes|1984|8|20}}

| birth_place = Drumaness, Northern Ireland

| death_date =

| death_place =

| party = Sinn Féin

| alma_mater = Queen's University Belfast

| website =

}}

Christopher John Hazzard (born 20 August 1984){{Cite book|last=Brunskill|first=Ian|url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/1129682574|title=The Times guide to the House of Commons 2019 : the definitive record of Britain's historic 2019 General Election|date=19 March 2020|isbn=978-0-00-839258-1|pages=176|publisher=HarperCollins Publishers Limited |oclc=1129682574}} is an Irish Sinn Féin politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for South Down since 2017. He previously served as Minister for Infrastructure from 2016 to 2017 and as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for South Down from 2012 to 2017.

Early life

Christopher John Hazzard{{Belfast Gazette |date=23 December 2019 |issue=8218 |page=1002}} was born in Drumaness, County Down, in 1984.{{Cite web|title=Hazzard, Chris, (born 20 Aug. 1984), MP (SF) South Down, since 2017|url=https://www.ukwhoswho.com/view/10.1093/ww/9780199540884.001.0001/ww-9780199540884-e-265088|access-date=2021-05-05|website=WHO'S WHO & WHO WAS WHO|year=2017|language=en|doi=10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.u265088|isbn=978-0-19-954088-4}}{{Cite web|title=Contact information for Chris Hazzard - MPs and Lords - UK Parliament|url=https://members.parliament.uk/member/4636/contact|access-date=2021-05-05|website=members.parliament.uk}} The eldest of four siblings, he attended Our Lady and St Patrick's College, Knock, before going to Queen's University Belfast.

Political career

Hazzard previously worked as a press officer for Sinn Féin.

He was selected by his party as a member (MLA) of the Northern Ireland Assembly to represent the South Down constituency in April 2012. He replaced his party colleague Willie Clarke, who had retired to concentrate on his local council work.[http://newrytimes.com/2012/04/17/chris-hazzard-to-represent-south-down-having-signed-assembly-register Hazzard to represent South Down], Newry Times, 17 April 2012. Hazzard was the Minister for Infrastructure in Northern Ireland from May 2016 until the Executive's collapse in January 2017. He was also a member of the Education Committee from 2012 to 2016 and the Public Accounts Committee from 2013 to 2014.

At the snap general election held on 8 June 2017, he was elected as the MP for South Down, defeating the incumbent SDLP MP, Margaret Ritchie. It is the first time that his party have represented the seat.{{cite news|last=McGonagle|first=Suzanne|date=9 June 2017|title=Constituency Profile: Chris Hazzard wins South Down|work=The Irish News|url=http://www.irishnews.com/news/2017/06/01/news/westminster-2017-south-down-1041297/|access-date=17 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170717103351/http://www.irishnews.com/news/2017/06/01/news/westminster-2017-south-down-1041297/|archive-date=17 July 2017}}

Personal life

Hazzard is a Gaelic Athletic Association member and PhD candidate at Queen's University Belfast.[http://sinnfeinsouthdown.com/mlas Profile] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160127103156/http://sinnfeinsouthdown.com/mlas/ |date=27 January 2016 }}, sinnfeinsouthdown.com; accessed 26 December 2015. He was, at the time of his selection, the youngest MLA.

He is married to Lisa, and the couple have a daughter, Eva, who was born in August 2015.{{Cite web|title=A Battle of Ballynahinch school project sparked my interest in politics|url=http://www.thedownrecorder.co.uk/pages/?title=A_Battle_of_Ballynahinch_school_project_sparked_my_interest_in_politics|access-date=2021-05-05|website=www.thedownrecorder.co.uk}}