Dermot Christopher Ahern (born 2 February 1955) is an
IrishIreland is a country in north-western Europe. The modern sovereign state occupies about five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned on 3 May 1921. It is a parliamentary democracy and a republic...
Fianna FáilFianna Fáil – The Republican Party , shortened to Fianna Fáil is a political party in the Republic of Ireland. It is the largest party in both houses of the Oireachtas, Ireland's bicameral parliament, and the leading party in a coalition government with the Green Party, which also has the support...
politicianA politician or political leader is an individual who is involved in influencing public decision making. This includes people who hold decision-making positions in government, and people who seek those positions, whether by means of election, coup d'état, appointment, electoral fraud, conquest,...
and is the current Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform. He is a
Teachta DálaA Teachta Dála is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower chamber of the Oireachtas of Ireland. The official translation of Teachta Dála is Deputy to the Dáil, a more literal translation isAssembly Delegate...
(TD) for the
Louth constituencyLouth is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency has an electorate of 81,952 and at present is served by 4 Teachtaí Dála...
.
Dermot Ahern was born in
DroghedaDrogheda is an industrial and port town in County Louth on the east coast of Ireland, 56 km north of Dublin. Drogheda is the third largest town in Ireland....
,
County LouthCounty Louth is one of the traditional counties of Ireland and is located within the province of Leinster. It was named after the village of Louth....
in 1955. He was educated at the Marist College in
DundalkDundalk is the county town of County Louth in Ireland, situated close to the border with Northern Ireland, within legally defined boundaries it is the second largest town in Ireland. It was granted its charter in 1189. It is sited on the lowest bridging point of the Castletown River...
and later attended University College Dublin. Afterwards Ahern studied at the
Law Society of IrelandThe Law Society of Ireland is the educational, representative and regulatory body of the solicitors' profession in the Republic of Ireland...
and was admitted as a
solicitorSolicitors are lawyers who traditionally deal with any legal matter apart from conducting proceedings in courts , with some exceptions. In the United Kingdom and Ireland, the legal profession is split between solicitors and barristers, and a lawyer will usually only hold one title...
. He then started a successful career as a solicitor.
Ahern currently lives in Blackrock in Dundalk with his wife and their two children.
Dermot Christopher Ahern (born 2 February 1955) is an
IrishIreland is a country in north-western Europe. The modern sovereign state occupies about five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned on 3 May 1921. It is a parliamentary democracy and a republic...
Fianna FáilFianna Fáil – The Republican Party , shortened to Fianna Fáil is a political party in the Republic of Ireland. It is the largest party in both houses of the Oireachtas, Ireland's bicameral parliament, and the leading party in a coalition government with the Green Party, which also has the support...
politicianA politician or political leader is an individual who is involved in influencing public decision making. This includes people who hold decision-making positions in government, and people who seek those positions, whether by means of election, coup d'état, appointment, electoral fraud, conquest,...
and is the current Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform. He is a
Teachta DálaA Teachta Dála is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower chamber of the Oireachtas of Ireland. The official translation of Teachta Dála is Deputy to the Dáil, a more literal translation isAssembly Delegate...
(TD) for the
Louth constituencyLouth is a parliamentary constituency represented in Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Irish parliament or Oireachtas. The constituency has an electorate of 81,952 and at present is served by 4 Teachtaí Dála...
.
Early and private life
Dermot Ahern was born in
DroghedaDrogheda is an industrial and port town in County Louth on the east coast of Ireland, 56 km north of Dublin. Drogheda is the third largest town in Ireland....
,
County LouthCounty Louth is one of the traditional counties of Ireland and is located within the province of Leinster. It was named after the village of Louth....
in 1955. He was educated at the Marist College in
DundalkDundalk is the county town of County Louth in Ireland, situated close to the border with Northern Ireland, within legally defined boundaries it is the second largest town in Ireland. It was granted its charter in 1189. It is sited on the lowest bridging point of the Castletown River...
and later attended University College Dublin. Afterwards Ahern studied at the
Law Society of IrelandThe Law Society of Ireland is the educational, representative and regulatory body of the solicitors' profession in the Republic of Ireland...
and was admitted as a
solicitorSolicitors are lawyers who traditionally deal with any legal matter apart from conducting proceedings in courts , with some exceptions. In the United Kingdom and Ireland, the legal profession is split between solicitors and barristers, and a lawyer will usually only hold one title...
. He then started a successful career as a solicitor.
Ahern currently lives in Blackrock in Dundalk with his wife and their two children. His pastimes include playing
golfGolf is a precision club-and-ball sport, in which competing players , using many types of clubs, attempt to hit balls into each hole on a golf course while employing the fewest number of strokes. Golf is one of the few ball games that does not require a standardized playing area...
and
windsurfingWindsurfing is a surface water sport using a windsurf board usually two to four meters long and powered by the effect of the wind on a sail. The rig is connected to the board by a free-rotating universal joint and comprises a mast, wishbone boom and sail...
. His skill at the latter is apparent as he is a former Ulster windsurfing champion. Ahern is also a former chairman of Rock Celtic soccer club. He was also treasurer of
Dundalk F.C.Dundalk Football Club is a professional Irish football club based in Dundalk, County Louth. The club currently play in the Premier Division of the League of Ireland. Founded in 1903, they are the second most successful team, in terms of trophies won, in the history of the League of Ireland. The...
Supporter's Club.
Early political career
Ahern was born into a family that had no association with party politics whatsoever. He first became involved in politics at a young age, becoming a member of Louth County Council in 1979 as a
Fianna FáilFianna Fáil – The Republican Party , shortened to Fianna Fáil is a political party in the Republic of Ireland. It is the largest party in both houses of the Oireachtas, Ireland's bicameral parliament, and the leading party in a coalition government with the Green Party, which also has the support...
representative. He served on that authority until 1991. Ahern was elected to
Dáil Éireannis the principal chamber of the Oireachtas . It is directly elected at least once in every five years under the system of proportional representation by means of the Single Transferable Vote . Its powers are similar to those of lower houses under many other bicameral parliamentary systems and it is...
at the
1987 general electionThe Irish general election of 1987 was held on 17 February 1987, four weeks after the dissolution of the Dáil on 20 January. The newly-elected 166 members of the 25th Dáil assembled at Leinster House on 10 March when a new Taoiseach and government were appointed.The general election took place in...
and has retained his seat ever since. The following year he was appointed assistant government
chief whipThe Chief Whip is a political office in some legislatures assigned to an elected member whose task is to administer the whipping system that ensures that members of the party attend and vote as the party leadership desires.-The Whips Office:...
by
TaoiseachThe Taoiseach , plural Taoisigh , also referred to as An Taoiseach , is the head of government of Ireland.The Taoiseach is appointed by the President upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann , and must, while he remains in office, retain the support of a majority in the Dáil...
Charles HaugheyCharles James "Charlie" Haughey was Taoiseach of Ireland, serving three terms in office; from December 1979 to June 1981, March 1982 to December 1982 and March 1987 to February 1992. Haughey, one of the most controversial of Irish politicians in the 20th century, was the fourth leader of Fianna...
.
Three years later in 1991 the Minister for Finance,
Albert ReynoldsAlbert Reynolds , served as Taoiseach of Ireland, serving one term in office from 1992 until 1994. He was the fifth leader of Fianna Fáil during the same period....
, failed in his attempt to oust Haughey as
TaoiseachThe Taoiseach , plural Taoisigh , also referred to as An Taoiseach , is the head of government of Ireland.The Taoiseach is appointed by the President upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann , and must, while he remains in office, retain the support of a majority in the Dáil...
and Fianna Fáil leader. Ahern was a staunch Haughey loyalist who supported the embattled leader throughout the leadership challenge and was rewarded by receiving promotion to the post of
Minister of State at the Department of the TaoiseachThe Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach is the Government of Ireland Chief Whip and is the most senior Minister of State. The role of the Whip is primarily that of the disciplinarian for all Government Parties i.e. to ensure that all deputies, including Ministers, attend for Dáil...
with special responsibility as Government Chief Whip. Ahern was simultaneously appointed to the position of
Minister of State at the Department of DefenceThe Minister of State at the Department of Defence is a junior ministerial post in the Irish Department of Defence. The position is always held jointly with that of the post of Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach who is the government Chief Whip. The Minister of State does not...
. In February 1992 Haughey was forced to resign and Albert Reynolds eventually succeeded in becoming party leader and Taoiseach. Ahern's abject loyalty to Haughey counted for nothing with Reynolds and he lost his ministerial position and returned to the backbenches for the entire duration of the Fianna Fáil-
Labour PartyThe Labour Party is a democratic socialist and social democratic political party in the Republic of Ireland. Founded by James Connolly in 1912 as the political wing of the Irish Trade Union Congress, it claims to be the country's oldest continuous political party and can also trace a separate...
government.
In late 1994
Bertie AhernPatrick Bartholomew "Bertie" Ahern is an Irish politician who served as Taoiseach of Ireland from 26 June 1997 to 7 May 2008....
(no relation) succeeded Albert Reynolds as leader of Fianna Fáil. Ahern once again returned to the senior ranks of Fianna Fáil becoming chief whip of the party. In 1997 Ahern was sent to London to check out rumours that another senior party member,
Ray BurkeRaphael Patrick "Ray" Burke; is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician. He is a former government minister who was convicted and jailed on charges arising from political corruption in office...
, had received a payment from Joseph Murphy. The claim was denied and Burke was appointed
Minister for Foreign AffairsThe Minister for Foreign Affairs is the senior minister at the Department of Foreign Affairs in the Government of Ireland. Its headquarters are at Iveagh House, on St. Stephen's Green in Dublin; "Iveagh House" is often used as a metonym for the department as a whole.The current Minister for...
two days later following the return to power of Fianna Fáil. Burke later served a jail sentence for corruption. Since that episode Ahern has taken a strong stance on the issue political corruption in Ireland - being the only member of government and Fianna Fáil to publicly call for an end to the link between business and politics with an outright ban of corporate and trade union donations to political parties.
In more recent times Ahern's religious beliefs have been questioned especially in the way that his religious ideology may influence his political standpoint.
1997–2002: Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs
Following the
1997 general electionThe Irish general election of 1997 was held on Friday, 6 June 1997. The 166 newly elected members of the 28th Dáil assembled on 26 June 1997 when a new Taoiseach and government were appointed....
a Fianna Fáil-
Progressive DemocratsThe Progressive Democrats , commonly known as the PDs, is a free market liberal party in the Republic of Ireland...
came to power and Ahern was appointed
Minister for Community, Social and Family AffairsThe Minister for Social and Family Affairs is the senior minister at the Department of Social and Family Affairs in the Government of Ireland.The current Minister for Social and Family Affairs is Mary Hanafin, TD...
. He worked hard in this portfolio and secured more funds for his department due to the privatisation of
Telecom ÉireannTelecom Éireann, or formally Bord Telecom Éireann - The Irish Telecommunications Board, was created by the Postal & Telecommunications Services Act, 1983 from the Department of Posts and Telegraphs, Ireland, under the leadership of the Minister for Posts & Telegraphs...
, arguing that these funds should be secured for future pensions requirements. As Social Affairs Minister Ahern also introduced the largest social welfare and pension increases in Irish history. He also achieved pension rights for Irish people who had emigrated from Ireland prior to 1953.
2002–2004: Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources
Following the return of the government at the
2002 general electionThe Irish general election of 2002 was held on Friday, 17 May 2002 just over three weeks after the dissolution of the 28th Dáil on Thursday 25 April by President Mary McAleese, at the request of the Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern...
Ahern was appointed Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources. In this post he was highly critical of the perceived failures of management and unions in the main telecommunications provider
EircomEircom Group plc is an Irish Telecommunications company, and former state-owned incumbent. It is currently the largest telecommunications operator in the Republic of Ireland and operates primarily on the island of Ireland, with a point of presence in the UK....
. He was an extremely interventionist minister in a telecoms market which, in his opinion, had experienced market failure. He introduced a system of Policy Directions to the telecoms regulator mandating, amongst other things, Flat Rate Internet Access. Ahern also devised and began implementing
IrelandIreland is a country in north-western Europe. The modern sovereign state occupies about five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned on 3 May 1921. It is a parliamentary democracy and a republic...
's Broadband Action Plan which entailed the government building an alternative fibre infractructure and co-location facilities. He sanctioned a reform package for public service broadcasting in Ireland and introduced a Charter for Ireland's national broadcaster RTÉ. He introduced a programme to provide free broadband internet access for every primary, secondary and special needs school in the State. Against the odds Ahern secured EU recognition and protection of the
Irish BoxThe Irish Conservation Box is a Marine Protected Area stretching along the southwest coast of Ireland. The ICB was defined based on advice from marine biologists, and following review by European Union fisheries ministers of the Common Fisheries Policy, as a means to safeguard the "biological...
, an area of Irish
territorial watersTerritorial waters, or a territorial sea, as defined by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, is a belt of coastal waters extending at most twelve nautical miles from the baseline of a coastal state...
out of bounds to Spanish and Portuguese fishermen.
2004–2008: Minister for Foreign Affairs
Following a cabinet reshuffle in 2004 Ahern received the coveted position of
Minister for Foreign AffairsThe Minister for Foreign Affairs is the senior minister at the Department of Foreign Affairs in the Government of Ireland. Its headquarters are at Iveagh House, on St. Stephen's Green in Dublin; "Iveagh House" is often used as a metonym for the department as a whole.The current Minister for...
, thus becoming the first Louth TD to hold that position since
Frank AikenFrank Aiken was a commander of the Irish Republican Army and later senior Irish politician. A founding-member of Fianna Fáil, Aiken was first elected to Dáil Éireann in 1923 and at each subsequent election until 1973...
in the 1960s. Shortly into his tenure in April 2005 Ahern was appointed one of four special envoys for
United NationsThe United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and the achieving of world peace...
reform by the UN Secretary General,
Kofi AnnanKofi Atta Annan, Honorary GCMG is a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations from 1 January 1997 to 1 January 2007. Annan and the United Nations were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize.-Early years and family:Kofi Annan was born in the...
. In effect the four envoys acted as Mr Annan's 'eyes and ears' around the world and presented proposals for reform at a special UN summit in September 2005. Ahern acted as envoy to European countries, on top of his other duties as minister.
Ahern has spoken of the 'Third Phase' in Irish foreign policy which he calls "Active Neutrality". This is a vision of non-aligned Ireland taking up its international responsibilities by acting as a bridge between the developed and developing world, and by acting as a world leader in conflict and disasters. In this regard he took an extremely outspoken line on the crisis in
DarfurDarfur is a region in Sudan. An independent sultanate for several hundred years, it was incorporated into Sudan by Anglo-Egyptian forces. The region is divided into three federal states: West Darfur, South Darfur, and North Darfur which are coordinated by a Transitional Darfur Regional Authority...
, calling on the international community to 'wake up to the reality of rape, murder and destruction in the region. More recently Ahern has announced the establishment of an
IrishIreland is a country in north-western Europe. The modern sovereign state occupies about five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned on 3 May 1921. It is a parliamentary democracy and a republic...
Volunteer Corps and a Rapid Response Corps which would harness existing expertise amongst the Irish public to assist in the developing world. Ahern is also a committed environmentalist who, for many years has recycled and composted all domestic waste and has stated that, in foreign policy terms, 'the single greatest, economic, environmental, geopolitical issue now facing us is climate change.'
As Foreign Minister, Ahern has been heavily involved in the
Northern Ireland peace processThe peace process, when discussing the history of Northern Ireland, is often considered to cover the events leading up to the 1994 Provisional Irish Republican Army ceasefire, the end of most of the violence of the Troubles, the Belfast Agreement, and subsequent political developments.-Towards a...
. Like many others in his party he describes himself as a republican and stated at the 2006
Seán MoylanSeán Moylan , was a Commandant of the Irish Republican Army and a senior Sinn Féin and Fianna Fáil politician...
commemoration in
CorkCork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster...
that
"as an Irish Republican my main personal and political goal is to live to see the unity of IrelandA united Ireland is the term used to refer to a sovereign state covering the whole of the island of Ireland. Presently, the island encompasses the territory of two independent sovereign states: the Republic of Ireland, which covers the southern 26 counties of the island, and the United Kingdom, one...
."
As Foreign Minister Ahern has also lead a national campaign to secure a path to permanent residency for the 25,000 to 50,000 undocumented Irish citizens resident in the United States. He has also introduced free passports for Irish senior citizens and has called for a comprehensive ban on the use of cluster munitions. Ahern was the first government Minister to call for a constitutional referendum on the issues arising from the supreme court decision on statutory rape, five months before it became government policy.
In 2007 Ahern established the Fianna Fáil Northern Strategy Committee with the aim of developing the strategy for Fianna Fáil's expansion into Northern Ireland on foot of Ógra Fianna Fáil's recruitment drive.
2008–present: Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform
Ahern was appointed Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform on the 7 May 2008 by the new
TaoiseachThe Taoiseach , plural Taoisigh , also referred to as An Taoiseach , is the head of government of Ireland.The Taoiseach is appointed by the President upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann , and must, while he remains in office, retain the support of a majority in the Dáil...
Brian CowenBrian Cowen is the current Taoiseach of Ireland. He took office on 7 May 2008, heading a coalition government led by his Fianna Fáil party that includes the Green Party and the Progressive Democrats, with the support of independent TDs.He has been a Teachta Dála for the constituency of...
. On 29 April 2009, Ahern proposed an 'controversial' amendment to the Defamation Bill adding the crime of
blasphemyBlasphemy is the use of reference to one or more gods in a manner considered objectionable by a religious authority. It may include using sacred names as stress expletives without intention to pray or speak of sacred matters; it is also sometimes defined as language expressing disbelief or...
to the statute books.
This amendment was passed in the Dáil on the 9 July 2009 with only an hour of the debate set aside for the bill, and was then narrowly passed by the
SeanadSeanad Éireann is the upper house of the Oireachtas of Ireland and its members are Seanadóirí . The House is also commonly known unofficially as the Seanad or Senate, and its members as senators....
the next day by walk-through vote, after being defeated in the initial electronic vote.
Since the amendment it has been criticized by many within the public sphere, free speech campaigners and some ministers of European Union member states.
Ahern's department are responsible for implementing the Civil Partnership Bill 2009 and published heads of legislation on 24 June 2008 and the complete bill on 26 June 2009.
Comments during debate on decriminalisation of Homosexuality
During the debate on decriminalisation of Homosexuality in the Dáil in 1993, he agreed with a statement by Fine Gael TD,
Brendan McGahonBrendan McGahon is an a former Irish politician in the Fine Gael party. He was a Teachta Dála for the constituency of Louth....
which reads: "Homosexuality is a departure from normality and while homosexuals deserve our compassion they do not deserve our tolerance" and who described homosexuals as being "like lefthand drivers driving on the right-hand side of the road."
Ahern himself added: "Will we eventually see the day in this country when, as has happened in the USA, homosexuals will seek the right to adopt children? We should think seriously about this possibility". Following his appointment as Minister responsible for equality, Ahern has refused to be drawn on this matter and has not given an answer as to whether he still holds those opinions.
Controversy over Michael McKevitt
Dermot Ahern denied claims that he had made representations to former Minister for Justice
Michael McDowellMichael McDowell is a senior counsel in the Bar Council of Ireland and a former politician.A grandson of Irish revolutionary Eoin MacNeill, McDowell was a founding member of the Progressive Democrats political party in the mid-1980s...
on behalf of
Michael McKevittMichael McKevitt is an Irish republican who was convicted of directing terrorism as the leader of the paramilitary organisation, the Real IRA.-Background:...
, who has been convicted of directing terrorism. He said that had merely forwarded an email from McKevitts' wife,
Bernadette Sands McKevittBernadette Sands McKevitt is an Irish republican, and a former leading member of the 32 County Sovereignty Movement. She lived in the mainly loyalist Rathcoole area of Newtownabbey before her family were forced out of their home to live in the mainly republican West Belfast...
, who was a constituent in 2004.
External links