Wrightbus Chairman and founder William Wright, 90, has been awarded a knighthood in the Queen's New Year Honours list, for services to the to the economy and the bus industry.
The Ballymena, Northern Ireland, firm employs 1,800 people and enjoys international success, especially in the far east.
In the new year, the business will expand again, as it moves into a new factory and headquarters building in the town, previously used by a tobacco firm.
Mr Wright was awarded an OBE in 2001, a CBE in 2011 and an honorary doctorate from Queens University Belfast in 2010.
He also has strong links to Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) – which is currently supporting the UK government – and is a long-standing member of the Orange Order.
He was honoured with the Orange Order’s ‘Grand Master’s Award’ in January 2015 in recognition of his business acumen and contribution to the economic life of Co Antrim.
In 2015, he signed general election nomination papers for the successful DUP candidate in North Antrim, Ian Paisley Jnr.
The same year, the DUP used a Wrightbus-built double-decker at its manifesto launch as a backdrop to speeches and photo opportunities.
He also backs Brexit and in March 2016 spoke out strongly in favour of Brexit: “I am totally in favour of getting out. It is time to take back control of our own affairs.”
In the same interview with the Ballymena Guardian, he added: “The bureaucracy of Europe is not conducive to the UK’s business interests. I am firmly in the ‘leave’ camp.”
The origins of Wrightbus can be traced back to when William’s father, Robert Wright, set up a Ballymena joinery business in the 1930s and was contracted to build a van for the local Co-op.
Robert Wright Coachworks was established in 1946 and son William subsequently took over the reins. Wrightbus also introduced the first low-floor bus to the UK market in 1993.
William Wright has been recognised with a number of other awards in recent years, including ‘2014 Innovation Founder’ – an award celebrating the achievements of some of Northern Ireland’s most successful business figures.
