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THE CABINET OF the 33rd Dáil has been revealed.
After months of negotiations, Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, and the Green Party have formed a new government.
Micheál Martin has been elected Taoiseach and is due to serve until late 2022.
At that point, under the terms of the coalition deal, Leo Varadkar will take over the role again.
Martin has now revealed his new-look Cabinet, making the announcement as the Dáil sat in the Convention Centre.
Micheál Martin has wanted the top job for some time now, and despite being appointed Taoiseach, he will be the shortest-serving Taoiseach yet when he swaps with Leo Varadkar in 2022 under the rotating Taoiseach deal struck under the programme for government.
Martin was first elected as a TD for Cork South Central in 1989.
He has served on the Fianna Fáil front bench and in four cabinet posts: Minister for Foreign Affairs (2008-2011), Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (2004-2008), Minister for Health (2000-04) and Minister for Education (1997-2000).
Fine Gael leader Leo Varadkar, while Tánaiste, is to take on the beefed-up Department of Enterprise.
Varadkar will be tasked with rolling out the special July jobs initiative which will help get businesses back up and running after the public health emergency.
Simon Coveney said last week he would like to remain as Minister for Foreign Affairs:
“I’ve always had a passion for international politics and foreign affairs and it is a brief that I really enjoy.”
Brexit hasn’t gone away, and Coveney has built up significant relationships in the last number of years.
Coveney was appointed Tánaiste in the last government in 2017. The Cork South Central TD was first elected to the Dáil in 1998. He lost out to Leo Varadkar in the Fine Gael leadership contest in 2017.
While it had been thought that Wicklow TD Simon Harris would remain on as the Minister for Health, he is taking on the newly created brief of Higher Education.
Harris has been in charge of the Department of Health during the Covid-19 crisis.
Having a new Higher Education seat at the Cabinet table was a red line issue for Fianna Fáil and in particular, Micheál Martin.
Paschal Donohoe became Finance Minister in June 2017, and will stay on in the position for the 33rd Dáil.
Earlier this week, Donohoe put his name forward to become next president of the Eurogroup – the group of finance ministers from the eurozone.
The Public Expenditure Minister is Fianna Fáil’s Michael McGrath. This position was previously held by Donohoe, but – as happened before in other governments – the role has been split.
Labour’s Brendan Howlin previously held this job when in government with Fine Gael under Enda Kenny. McGrath is also a Cork South-Central TD, and was first elected to the Dáil in the 2007 general election.
A big boost for Fine Gael’s Helen McEntee as she takes over as Justice Minister.
She has served as the Minister for European Affairs throughout the Brexit debacle, and has long been tipped for a ministerial position due to her work in Brussels.
The Meath East TD was previously appointed Minister of State for Mental Health and Older People in May 2016. She was elected in 2013.
The daughter of the late Denis Foley TD, Norma Foley is a first-time TD to the Dáil and a former councillor from Kerry.
Today, Foley nominated Micheál Martin as Taoiseach.
Stephen Donnelly is a relatively new member of the party, but he is set to take over from his constituency colleague Simon Harris.
Donnelly first ran for election as an independent in 2011, and then joined the Social Democrats. He left that party to join Fianna Fáil.
At the Harvard Kennedy School he studied international development.
Roderic O’Gorman is a newly-elected TD for Dublin West. He previously sat on Fingal County Council.
He has worked as a law lecturer in Dublin City University, where he lectures on EU and Planning law and is also a member of DCU’s Brexit Institute.
Heather Humphreys is a TD for Cavan-Monaghan.
She served as the Minister for Business, Enterprise, and Innovation in the last government.
She also served as Minister for Culture, Heritage & the Gaeltacht and was Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs.
Darragh O’Brien was Fianna Fáil’s Spokesperson on Housing, Planning and Local Government in the last Dáil – going up against Fine Gael’s Eoghan Murphy.
O’Brien expressed a strong interest in taking on the housing brief.
The Dublin Fingal TD is from Malahide, and was elected to Dáil Eireann in 2007. He served in the Seanad from 2011 to 2016 before regaining his seat.
Barry Cowen is a Laois-Offaly TD and brother of former Taoiseach Brian Cowen.
He has previously held frontbench spokesperson roles on Environment and Local Government, and Social Protection.
Catherine Martin is deputy leader of the Green Party, and is currently in contention with Eamon Ryan for the party leadership.
An English teacher by profession, Martin has represented the constituency of Dublin Rathdown since 2016, having previously served on Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council.
She headed up the Green team in the government formation talks.
Ever since it became known that the Greens might be serious contenders for entering into government, Ryan has been a given for the Climate ministry.
However, throughout the talks it is understood there were calls from his party for the transport brief to be rolled together with Climate Action, as the two are so interlinked.
The Green Party leader, a TD for Dublin Bay South, was a previous Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources from 2007 to 2011 under the Bertie Ahern-led FF-Green government.
There had been some speculation the deputy leader of Fianna Fáil Dara Calleary would get the nod in Justice, but he is set to take on the role of Chief Whip.
Calleary is from Ballina in Mayo and has been a TD since 2007.
Paul Gallagher has been appointed as the Government’s new Attorney General.
The Taoiseach announced that Fine Gael’s Hildegarde Naughton will be the Minister of State covering Transport and the Green Party’s Pippa Hackett will be a Minister of State in the Department of Agriculture. Both will be allowed to attend Cabinet.
Speaking at the Convention Centre this evening, Micheál Martin said in the coming week he will announce who else will be appointed as Ministers of State.
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I am a counsellor and can confirm that there are counsellors nationwide, newly qualified, only looking out for clients, even if the Government subsidised such services, a sliding cheaper scale could meet the state funding meaning vulnerable persons would have someone to speak to at least. Better to sit on a counsellors chair than on a waiting list.
@Vincent Doyle: the government – and frankly most counsellors – don’t care about the poor.
Counsellors charge about 70/hour and most will hear a please for help coupled with a, ‘I don’t have 70/hour’ and say, ‘tough luck’.
Counselling, psychology and psychiatry in Ireland are money rackets largely. Not because people wouldn’t benefit from genuine help, but because the people in the system in Ireland are in it for themselves and their bank accounts.
So of course, vicious cycle, the rich get help and the poor end up suffering needlessly.
@Vincent Doyle: I am not a five-star chef, and I can confirm there are expensive restaurants nationwide, but nobody on minimum wage is able to eat in any of them, for the same reason that they are unable to access councillers nationwide to address their mental health care, because it is beyond their financial means to do so, regardless of the availability.
The solution is really quite simple, deal with the issues that are causing adults and children to fall through the cracks of our mental health care system, delays span months between someone reaching out for help to mental health care services and that help being given.
Nobody presenting to any A&E department bleeding out is being told to wait a month or more, a mental health crisis for a child or adult is the mental equivalent.
@Vincent Doyle: I have a qualification in counselling. But I haven’t used it yet. I want to get experience before I start off. I know there is a huge need for counsellors.
@Pat Corr: see question further down
@Chris O’Brien: Sorry Chris but your talking nonsense there. There are plenty of low cost and free counselling services provided through charities and other NGOs. Most Counsellors are also reasonable and will often charge on a sliding scale based on a person’s financial position. Not all in the private sector make this accommodation but many do
@Vincent Doyle: depends where these guys got their qualifications .
@Chris O’Brien: you don’t expect experts to offer their services for free or at cut costs ? You any idea as to how much to cost to run a practice with insurance and indemnities , annual fees to their professional body , and expenses for constant regular training and seminars . €70 is nothing . The “poor” just need to prioritise ; laying off the drugs would be a start for many of them and stop making excuses .
@Dvsespaña: why the f u c k do you assume that 5 star places ever intended to cater for the minimum wage sect ? Why are you whinging ? It’s not for you nor is it suppose to be for you . (Not you personally )
In every dept most people want the german system(works for all) , we keep getting the american one (works only for wealthy).
@bruce banner: we ain’t commies or socialists .
Time to bring our troops home from Lebanon. It’s quite clear peace has collapsed with Israel and Lebanon launching attacks against each other. I’d rather our troops brought home safely now instead of them sitting in bunkers with the conflict escalating.
Not properly regulated
And that’s the way the unions & the professional bodies want it
They also run a Monday to Friday health service but people are selfish & continue to get sick/have accidents/give birth at weekends
I am sick to my back teeth hearing of problems & failures in our health service. I’m also sick of muppet politico’s saying it needs more money.
It needs REFORM – real meaningful reform from a minister with the courage to face down all the vested interests
And it appears we haven’t had one of them for the last 40 years
Not properly regulated. Or funded.
Our economy loses 1.8B annually because ADHD isn’t diagnosed or treated.
For context, long term social welfare costs the state 550M. Which is less than a third lost just to ADHD.
And these issues exist because for generations Irish voters choose ‘out of sight out of mind’ for mental health issues. And politicians cynically took advantage of that.
And now we’re all reaping the rewards of our societal shame re mental health issues and our collective hatred of the poor.
Well guess what, pretending problems don’t exist isn’t public healthcare policy. It costs us all. And not a little. It costs us annually more than unemployment. It costs more than out healthcare ‘overspend’.
Until we behave like compassionate humans and fund services for EVERYONE we’ll all just suffer.
The true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members
@RIP: bollox ! Pay your way or die . It’s up to clans and families to look after their own. Don’t expect strangers to do it . Thatcher was right about “society”. You want communism or socialism ? You won’t find it in Ireland (or anywhere else for that matter )
@Gerry Kelly, great comment, the whole public sector needs both massive reform and investment in proper IT systems. I wouldn’t mind if there were a few billion put aside for it but only if the management and staff are accountable afterwards. Any excess staff in one area could be offered retraining in other areas and if they don’t want that then there is compulsory redundancies. We now have a situation that management get paid the big bucks but can’t make a decision without getting outside consultants in and once they’re in the costs spiral. Time for a root and branch review of it all while we have the money.
There’s two types of Irish people:
- People who have never used mental health services in Ireland/the rich who simply buy what they need despite the high prices – this group has no issues with public mental heath services in Ireland
- People who have tried to use public mental health services in Ireland and aren’t rich – this group feels like they’re in a third world country and are usually treated like garbage.
FFFG has long been reelected by the first group. The second group typically won’t vote FFFG once they realise just how poor the HSE really is. And why.
@Chris O’Brien: mental health issues don’t care about a person’s pedigree or wealth. It effects everyone . The waiting lists effect everyone too . Can’t always buy one’s way out of them . Talking sh it e as usual. Shut the f u ck and do something about your evidentially whiney sh I Tty situation . No one cares about your ranting. You and your kind do nothing but sit on your arse and expect others to spoon feed you. Do us all a big favour and get off social media and do something constructive . Maybe get a job and take those chips off your shoulders towards people who are better than you or more successful. Alternatively , find a river or moving train and don’t look back. Either way, do one. Ranting here is doing you no favours .
So what is stopping you getting the experience?
@Antoni marr: meeting the criteria for registration ? Recognition of qualifications etc , High expense to run a practice ? Might be a bit of a closed shop eg only register practitioners from a certain organisation ? Funding and a lack of resources would be a big issue . Can’t do it for free and the State will have to intervene as those that really need urgent care don’t have the funds to pay for it
One final note, if this could be connected to refugees in ANY WAY the comments would be rammed. But since this only affects the poor and mentally ill all of those, ‘save Ireland from the refugees’ types are completely disinterested.
Go figure.
Save Ireland, unless it’s the poor or sick or elderly then who cares, right lads?
@Chris O’Brien: eh, THE ONLY PEOPLE who rant and rave on this platform about Refugees and the ills of them , which leads to closing down of the comment sections ; and the ONLY PEOPLE who have gone out protesting against refugees etc and acted violently ARE THE POOR ! So , your thesis is , as usual, nonsense . Sincerely get help where you can. Ranting and raving here isn’t the right way to go about it .
Ag we’re all mad
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