Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Mark Durkan is an Irish nationalist politician in Northern Ireland who was leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party from 2001 to 2010. Durkan was born in Derry; his father, Brendan, was an Royal Ulster Constabulary District Inspector in Armagh. He was raised by his mother, Isobel, after his father was killed in a road accident in 1961. He was educated at St. Patrick's Primary School and at St. Columb's College. During his time at St. Columb's, he was Head Boy. He studied politics at the Queen's University of Belfast and later did a part-time postgraduate course in Public Policy Management with the University of Ulster at Magee. While at QUB Durkan served as Deputy President of Queen's Students' Union from 1982 to 1983. He was also elected Deputy President of the Union of Students in Ireland from 1982 to 1984. He became involved in politics in 1981 when he became a member of the Social Democratic and Labour Party