Ireland Ministers

Worldwide Guide to Women in Leadership
Republic of Ireland/ Éire/ Poblacht na h'Eirean
(Female suffrage 1918/22. Local suffrage in 1898) Formerly a British Crown Colony, revolutionary Irish Republic declared 1919 and war of indepence until 1922 when the country became an independent Free State, Republic 1937

Also see Ireland Parliament and Ireland Heads of State

In Ireland the Premier Minister is known as the Taoiseach and the Deputy Premier Minister as Tánaiste.

1919-21 Provisoric Minister for Labour Countess Constance Markiewicz
1921-22
Minister for Labour
A Commander during the 1916 uprising and arrested for the first of several times by the British authorities. 1917 President of
Cumann na mBan and 1918 President of Sinn Fein in Dublin, 1918 elected the first female Member of House of Commons in the United Kingdom, but refused to take her seat. Elected m
ember of the first Dáil Éireann, the unilaterally-declared Parliament of the Irish Republic and re-elected to the Second Dáil in the House of Commons of Southern Ireland elections of 1921. She left government in January 1922 along with Éamon de Valera and others in opposition to the Anglo-Irish Treaty. She fought actively for the Republican cause in the Irish Civil War. Reelected in 1923, but did not take her seat. She joined Fianna Fáil on its foundation in 1926, chairing the inaugural meeting. Reelected again in 1927 but died before she could take up her seat. Born as Constance Gore-Booth, was married to the Polish Count Kazimierz Dunin-Markiewicz, and lived (1868-1927)

1977-78 Parliamentary Secretary of Industry and Energy Máire Geoghegan-Quinn
1978-79 Minister for State for Industry and Energy
1979-81 Minister for the Gaeltacht (Gaelic or Irish speaking areas)
1982 Minister of State for Youth and Sports
1987-91 Minister of State in the Office of the Taoiseach with Responsibility as Co-ordinator of Government Policy and for European Questions
1992-93 Minister for Transport, Communication and Tourism
1993-94 Minister for Justice (Fourth in the Cabinet)
1994 Acting Minister for Equality and Law Reform
2010- EU-Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science
Member of the Dael (TD) 1975-97, Deputy President of Fíanna Faíl 1979-81, in 1997 she announced that she would challenge Bertie Ahern for the position when Reynolds retired. However on the day of the vote she withdrew from the contest and Member of the European Court of Auditors 1999-2009. (b. 1945- )

1981-82 Minister for Health and Social Affairs Eileen Desmond
Labour TD 1965-69 and 1973-79 and 1981-87, Senator 1969-73 and Member of the European Parliament 1979-81.
She lived (1932–2005)

1981-82 Leader of the Government in the Senate Gemma Hussey
1982-86 Minister for Education
1986-87 Minister for Social Welfare
Fine Gael Senator 1977-82, TD 1982-89. (b. 1938-)

1981-82 Minister of State for Social Affairs and Health Maria Diana Flaherty
TD for Fine Gael 1981-97. (b. 1953-)

1986-87 Minister of State in the Office of the Taoiseach and Justice Nuala Fennell
TD for Fine Gael 1981-92. (b. 1935-)

1986-87 Minister of State for Finance and Environment Avril Doyle
1994-97 Minister of State for The Deputy Premier, Finance, Transport, Energy and Communication with special responsibility for Consumers of Public Services
Mayor of Wexford 1976-77, TD for Fine Gael 1982-89 and 1992-97, Senator 1989-92 and 1997-2002, Member of the European Parliament from 1999 and Vice-Chairperson of the European People's Party. In 2011 she withdrew from the party internal contest for the nomination for Presidential Candidate. Another unsuccessful candidate was Mairead McGuinness,.(b. 1949-).

1987-91 Minister for Education Mary O'Rourke
1991-92 Minister for Health
1992-93 Minister of State for Industry and Commerce with pecial responsibilty for Trade  and Marketing
1993-94 Minister of State for Employment and Enterprises with special responsibilty for Labour
1993-97 Member of the Council of State
1997-2002 Minister for Public Enterprises, Transport, Energy and Communication (Fourth in the Cabinet)
Chairperson of the District Council of Athloe 1980-81, 1984-85, and 1986-87, Member of the Dail 1982-2002 and 2007-11. Senator 2002-07. Candidate for the leadership of Fíanna Faíl and the post of Taoiseach/Prime Minister 1992, Deputy Party Leader 1994-2002 and Party leader in the Senate 2002-07. (b 1937-)

1989-92 Minister of State for Environment Mary Harney
1997-2006 Deputy Premier / Tánaiste
1997-2004 Minister for Enterprise and Employment and Minister for Trade
2004-11 Minister for Health and Children
Finna Fael Senator 1977-81 and TD 1981-2011. Founding member of the Progressive Democrats 1986, Chief Whip 1988-89, Deputy Leader 1989-93 and Party Leader 1993-2006, Acting Party Leader 2007-08 when the party went from 8 to two seats in Parliament. (b. 1954-)

1993-94 and 1994-97 Minister for Education Niamh Bhreathnach
Deputy Chairperson 1989-90 and Chairperson of the Labour Party 1990-93. TD 1992-97. (b. 1946-)

1993-94 Minister of State for Social Welfare responsible for Poverty Joan Burton
1994-97 Minister of State for Foreign Affairs with special responsibilty for Development Aid, Human Rights and Justice   
2011-16 Minister for Social Protection
2014-16 Deputy Premier / Tánaiste  

Labour TD 1992-92 and from 2002, when she became Spokesperson for Finance after loosing the election for the party deputy leadership in 2004, but she was elected Deputy Leader in 2007 and Leader in 2014. She was Finance Spokesperson until 2011. (b. 1949-)

1993-94 Minister of State in the Office of the Tánaiste and Finance Eithne FitzGerald
1994-97 Minister of State for the Tánaiste and Enterprises and Employment with pecial responsibilty for Labour Affairs (Labour Minister)
Labour TD 1992-97 (b. 1950-).

1994-97 Minister for Justice Nora Owen
TD for Fine Gael 1981-87 and 1989-2002, Spokesperson on Foreign Affairs 1989-92 and 1993-94, Deputy Party Leader 1993-2002 until she lost her seat. She is Grand-niece of Michael Collins (1890-1922), head of the Provisorial Government 1922 and sister of Mary Banotti, Presidential candidate in 1997.(b. 1945-)

1994-97 Minister of State for Environment and Local Government Liz McManus
TD 1992-2011, representing the Democratic Left until 1999 until it merged with Labour.  Deputy Leader of Labour 2002-07 and Acting Leader from August 2007 when her predecessor resigned until September when a replacement was named without contenders. (b. 1947-)   

1997-2002 Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and The Islands Síle de Valera
2002-06 Minister of State for Education and Science with special responsibility for Adult Education, Youth Affairs and Educational Disadvantage
Finna Fail TD 1977-81 and 1987-2007. Grand-daughter of Prime Minister and President Éamon de Valera (1882-1979). (b. 1954-).

1997-2002 Minister of State for Foreign Affairs with special responsibility for Overseas Development Assistance and Human Rights Liz O’Donnell
2002 Minister of State to the Government (Cabinet Minister)
TD 1992-2007, Party Whip 1993-97 and Deputy Leader of the Progressive Democrats 2006-07. (b. 1956-)

1997-2002 Minister of State for Justice, Law Reform and Equality with special responsibility for Equality and Disabilities
2006-08
Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture and Food with special responsibility for Forestry
2008-09 Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children with special responsibility for Health Promotion and Food Safety Mary Wallace
Fianna Fail Senator 1987-89, TD 1989-2011. From 2007 she was the only woman among the 18 Ministers of State. There we
re 3 female and 12 male Cabinet Ministers. (b. 1959-).

2000-02 Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children, at the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform and at the Education of Education and Science with special responsibility for Children
2002-04 Minister of State in the Office of the Taoiseach with
Special responsibilty for Information Society, and Government Chief Whip (Attending Cabinet Meetings) and Minister of State for Defence
2004-08 Minister for Education and Science
2008-10 Minister for Social and Family Affairs
2010-11 Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism
2011 Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation Mary Hanafin
Former National Treasurer of Fianna Fail she was TD 1997-2011 and was candidate for the party leadership in 2011. (b. 1959-).

2001-02 Minister of State with special responsibility for the Gaeltacht and the Islands Mary Coughlan
2002-
04 Minister of Social Security and Family Affairs
2004-08 Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
2008-11 Deputy Prime Minister
2008-10 Minister for Enterprise Trade and Employment
2010-11 Minister for Education and Science
2011 Minister for Health and Family
Fianna Fail TD 1987-2011 and Deputy Party Leader from 2008. From 2007 2 of the 16 Ministers were women. Both her father and uncle were MP's. (b. 1965-).

2007-09
Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children, the Department of Social, and Family Affairs and the Department of Enviornment, Heritage and Local Government with special responsibility for services for older people Máire Hoctor
Fianna Fáil TD 2002-2011. From 2007 2 of the 20 Ministers of State were women. (b. 1963-).

2009-11 Minister of State at the Departments of Health and Children, Social and Family Affairs and the Environment, Heritage and Local Government with special responsibility for Older People and Health Promotion Áine Brady
Fianna Fáil TD 200
7-11 and the only woman among 15 Ministers of State until 2010. In 2011 Fianna Fáil went from 77 to 18 mandates, all of them males (b. 1954-).

2010-11 Minister of State with responsibility for Equality, Human Rights and Social Inclusion Mary White
Green TD 2007-11 (as their first woman) and Deputy Party Leader 2001-11. (b. 1948-).

2011-14 Minister for Children and Youth Affairs Frances Fitzgerald
2014- Minister for Justice and Equality
2016- Deputy Premier / Tánaiste  
Senator and Leader of the Fine Gael group in Seanad Éireann 2007-11 and TD from 2011. (b. 1950-)

2011- Attorney General Máire Whelan
Former Financial Secretary of Labour. As the government's legal advisor, she attends Cabinet Meetings without formally being a member. (1962-)

2011-12 Minister of State at the Department of Health with special responsibility for Primary Care Roisin Shortall
Labour TD since 1992 and Joint Leader of the Social Democrats from 2015. (b. 1954-)

2011 Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade with special responsibility for Trade and Development
2011-14 Minister of State at the Department for Environment, Community and Local Government for Housing and Planning
2014-16 Minister of Education and Skills Jan O'Sullivan
City Councillor 1985-94 and Mayor of Limerick 1993-94, Senator and Leader of the Labour Group 1993- 97 and TD from 1997 and candidate for the post of Deputy Leader in 2007. (b. 1950-).

2011-14 Minister of Department of Justice, Equality and Defence with special responsibility for Equality Kathleen Lynch
2014-16 Minister of State at the Department of Health with special sesponsibility for Primary Care, Mental Health and Disability
Democratic Left TD 1994-97 and Labour TD 2002-16. (b. 1953-).

2011-13 Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade with special responsibility for European Affairs Lucinda Creighton
Dublin City Councillor 2004-07 and Fine Gael TD 2007-13, Independent from 2013 and leader of Leader of Renua Ireland from 2014. Was not reelected in 2016. (b. 1980-)

2014- Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht Heather Humphreys
2016- Minister for Regional Development and Rural Affairs
Fine Gael TD from 2011.

2014-16 Minister of State at the Departments of Agriculture, Food and Marine and Transport, Tourism and Sport with Special Responsibility for Rural Economic Development (implementation of the CEDRA Report) and Rural Transport Ann Phelan
Labour TD 2011-16. (b. 1961-)

2016- Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Mary Mitchell O’Connor
Fine Gael TD from 2011. (b. 1959-)

2016- Minister for Children and Youth Katherine Zappone
Independent Senator 2011-16 and TD from 2016. She is the first openly lesbian member of the government. (b. 1953-).

2016- Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach and Chief Government Whip Regina Doherty
Fine Gael TD from 2011. (b. 1971-)

 

Last update 14.05.16