In her role as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Theresa Villiers, MP for Chipping Barnet, took part in the highly successful visit to Northern Ireland last week by Her Majesty the Queen and His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh. The visit broke new ground since it was announced in advance for the very first time. Previously, the security situation meant that details had to remain confidential until the very last minute.
The Royal couple also had the chance to mix with members of the public in Belfast in areas which would once have been very difficult to visit.
Speaking after the conclusion of the visit, Theresa Villiers said "It was a great honour to have been able to take part in this highly successful Royal visit. The fact that Her Majesty and His Royal Highness were able to visit places such as the Crumlin Road Gaol and the St George's Market shows how Northern Ireland has changed for the better."
"Their visit to the film set of Game of Throwns as generated worldwide interest but the aspect of the tour which I enjoyed most of all was the speech Her Majesty made at Belfast City Hall. It was heartening to see Her Majesty given such a warm welcome from representatives of political parties from right across the spectrum. That was another historic first and is a reflection of the personal contribution Her Majesty has made to peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland, not least because of her tremendously successful State Visit to the Republic of Ireland in 2011."
As Secretary of State, Theresa was given an audience with Her Majesty on the first day of the visit and accompanied the Royal couple to all their engagements.