Stormont Minister Conor Murphy standing down from post on medical grounds

Northern Ireland’s Minister for the Economy, Conor Murphy, is standing down from his post on medical grounds.

The Sinn Féin vice-president Michelle O’Neill made the announcement on Wednesday evening.

“Conor has been advised by his doctor to rest and will undergo further medical tests,” Ms O’Neill said.

“My colleagues and I all wish Conor a full and speedy recovery.

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Ms O’Neill said the former Minister for Communities, the South Belfast MLA Deirdre Hargey, would be nominated to step into the Economy brief “on an interim basis pending Conor’s return.”

Mr Murphy was absent from the Assembly on Tuesday as he had been “advised to rest pending medical tests.”

He was also unable to attend the Covid-19 inquiry - which is currently sitting in Belfast – to give evidence on Wednesday as scheduled.

One of Sinn Féin’s most experienced politicians in the North, Mr Murphy is the party’s chief negotiator and has served as a minister three times, most recently taking up the position of Minister for the Economy following the restoration of the Stormont institutions in February.

He was Minister for Finance at the time of the collapse of the Executive in 2022 and was previously Minister for Regional Development.

From Camlough in South Armagh, he is married with two children and won his first election – to Newry and Mourne District Council – more than 30 years ago.

Since 1998 has represented Newry and Armagh as both an MP and an MLA.

In 1982 he was sentenced to five years in prison for IRA membership and possession of explosives.

A number of politicians sent their best wishes to Mr Murphy after Ms O’Neill’s announcement on Wednesday.

The Ulster Unionist leader Doug Beattie said he wished Mr Murphy well and “hope he makes a speedy recovery.”

The leader of the Opposition at Stormont, the SDLP’s Matthew O’Toole, sent the same wishes and said Mr Murphy was “absolutely right to prioritise his health and hope to see him back at his desk and in the chamber when he’s ready.”