Sir Reg Empey (51) is a close colleague of David Trimble since the early 1970s and has stuck by him through his most difficult travails of recent years.
Before and after the Belfast Agreement when half of the UUP Westminster MPs were deserting their leader and other more self-serving members were playing cute, he remained solid.
He became Sir Reg Empey after being honoured in the British New Year Honours List. He has an economics degree from Queen's University and has twice served as Belfast Lord Mayor and chaired the City Council's economic development committee.
He has a background in retailing - Newells store where he worked in the mid-1970s on Royal Avenue, Belfast, was twice badly damaged in IRA bombs.