Revision as of 14:47, 27 June 2006 editRobotG (talk | contribs)86,515 editsm Robot: Changing Category:Westminster System per CFDS← Previous edit | Latest revision as of 12:45, 18 December 2024 edit undoSpleodrach (talk | contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users, Page movers, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers169,247 edits update - still Taoiseach but now in a caretaker capacity | ||
Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{Short description|Head of government of Ireland}} | |||
{{PoliticsRofI}} | |||
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2024}} | |||
The '''Taoiseach'''<ref>''Taoiseach'' is ]. It may be pronounced "tee-shoch" (with the "ch" sound as in "loch" — ] {{IPA|/ti:ʃɒx/}}). In the accent of some speakers of Donegal Irish, however, its pronunciation is closer to "tee-shah" — {{IPA|/ti:ʃɑ:/}}. The plural, ''Taoisigh'', may be pronounced "tee-she" or "tee-shig" — {{IPA|/ti:ʃi:/}} or {{IPA|/ti:ʃɪg/}}. The Taoiseach is often formally addressed in English as ''An Taoiseach'', "An" being the Irish definite article.</ref> (plural: ''Taoisigh'') or, more formally, '''An Taoiseach''', is the ] of the ] and the leader of the ]. The Taoiseach is appointed by the ] upon the nomination of ] (the lower house of parliament), and must, while he or she remains in office, enjoy the confidence of the Dáil. The current Taoiseach is ], ] of the ] party. | |||
{{use Hiberno-English|date=August 2023}} | |||
{{Infobox official post | |||
| post = Taoiseach | |||
| insignia = Logo of the Department of the Taoiseach as of April 2018.png | |||
| insigniasize = 230px | |||
| image = Simon Harris (2024) (cropped).jpg | |||
| incumbent = ] | |||
| incumbentsince = 9 April 2024 | |||
| department = {{ubl|]|]}} | |||
| style = {{Langx|ga|A Thaoisigh}} | |||
| type = ]{{efn|name="ConstitIrl"}} | |||
| member_of = {{Ubl|]|]|]|]|]}} | |||
| reports_to = ] | |||
| residence = None{{efn|The Taoiseach has no official residence, with each taoiseach residing in their own home. They may use the State Guest House at ] in ] for official state functions}} | |||
| seat = ],<br/>], Dublin, Ireland | |||
| nominator = ] | |||
| appointer = ] | |||
| termlength = While commanding the confidence of the majority of ]. No term limits are imposed on the office. | |||
| precursor = ] | |||
| formation = 29 December 1937{{efn|name="Cosgrave"}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Former Taoisigh |url=https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/9feb2a-former-taoisigh/ |website=www.gov.ie |publisher=] |access-date=14 February 2024 |language=en |date=1 November 2018 |archive-date=4 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200304162522/https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/9feb2a-former-taoisigh/ |url-status=live }}</ref> | |||
| first = ]{{efn|Before the enactment of the 1937 ], the head of government was referred to as the ]. This office was first held by ] from 1922 to 1932, and then by ] from 1932 to 1937.|name="Cosgrave"}} | |||
| deputy = ] | |||
| salary = €243,895 annually {{small|(2024)}}<ref name="Salaries, Houses of the Oireachtas">{{cite web |url=http://www.oireachtas.ie/parliament/tdssenators/salariesallowances/salaries/ |title=Salaries, Houses of the Oireachtas |publisher=] |access-date=18 June 2024 }}</ref><br/>(including €113,679 salary as a ])<ref name="Salaries, Houses of the Oireachtas"/> | |||
| website = {{URL|https://www.gov.ie/en/organisation/department-of-the-taoiseach/|Department of the Taoiseach}} | |||
}} | |||
{{Politics of the Republic of Ireland}} | |||
The '''Taoiseach''' ({{IPAc-en|audio=Ga-Taoiseach.ogg|ˈ|t|iː|ʃ|ə|x}}){{efn|Pronounced {{IPAc-en|audio=Ga-Taoiseach.ogg|ˈ|t|iː|ʃ|ə|x}},<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.lexico.com/definition/Taoiseach |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200322182045/https://www.lexico.com/definition/taoiseach |url-status=dead |archive-date=2020-03-22 |title=Taoiseach |dictionary=] UK English Dictionary |publisher=]}}</ref> {{IPA-ga|ˈt̪ˠiːʃəx|lang|}}. The plural {{lang|ga|Taoisigh}} is pronounced {{IPAc-en|ˈ|t|iː|ʃ|i}} {{respell|TEE|shee}}, {{IPA-ga|ˈt̪ˠiːʃiː|lang}}.|name="Pronounced"}} is the ] or ] of ].{{efn|name="ConstitIrl"}} The office is appointed by the ] upon the nomination of ] (the ] of the ], Ireland's national legislature) and the office-holder must retain the support of a majority in the Dáil to remain in office. | |||
The ] word '']'' means "chief" or "leader", and was adopted in the 1937 ] as the title of the "head of the Government or Prime Minister".{{efn|name="ConstitIrl"}} It is the official title of the head of government in both English and Irish, and is not used for the prime ministers of other countries, who are instead referred to in Irish by the generic term {{lang|ga|príomh-aire}}.{{efn|Pronounced {{IPAc-en|p|r|iː|ˈ|v|ɛər|ə}}, {{IPA-ga|ˌpʲɾʲiːw ˈaɾʲə|lang}}.|name="Pronounced2"}} The phrase ''an Taoiseach'' is sometimes used in an otherwise English-language context, and means the same as "the Taoiseach".<ref>{{cite journal |last1=O'Leary |first1=Brendan |title=An Taoiseach: The Irish prime minister |journal=West European Politics |date=April 1991 |volume=14 |issue=2 |pages=133–162 |doi=10.1080/01402389108424849 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/233072846|access-date=9 August 2024}}</ref> | |||
== Overview == | |||
The incumbent Taoiseach is ], ], leader of ], who took office on 9 April 2024 following the resignation of ] and under a planned rotation as part of the coalition agreement between ], ], and the ]. Varadkar held the post from December 2022 and ], TD held the post from June 2020 until December 2022 as part of that agreement. Varadkar tendered his resignation as Taoiseach to the President on 8 April 2024; he was succeeded by ] the next day after his Dáil election and appointment, becoming the youngest officeholder in state history.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.rte.ie/news/politics/2024/0409/1442464-harris-politics/ | title=Cabinet members receive seals of office after reshuffle | website=] | date=9 April 2024 | access-date=9 April 2024 | archive-date=9 April 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240409130013/https://www.rte.ie/news/politics/2024/0409/1442464-harris-politics/ | url-status=live }}</ref> | |||
Under the ] the Taoiseach must be appointed from among the members of Dáil Éireann. In the event that the Taoiseach loses the confidence of Dáil Éireann, he is not automatically removed from office but, rather, is compelled to ''either'' resign ''or'' persuade the President to dissolve the Dáil. The President may refuse to grant a dissolution, and, in effect, force the Taoiseach to resign, but, to date, no president has exercised this prerogative (though the option arose in 1944, twice in 1982 and would have arisen in 1994 had Albert Reynolds chosen, following his Dáil defeat, to seek a dissolution rather than resign). The Taoiseach may lose the support of Dáil Éireann by the passage of a ], the failure of a vote of confidence or, alternatively, the Dáil may refuse '']'' <ref>One example of the Dáil refusing supply occurred in January 1982 when the then ]-] government of ] lost a vote on the budget.</ref>. In the event of the Taoiseach's resignation, he continues to exercise the duties and functions of his office until the appointment of a successor. ''See ]''. | |||
==Overview== | |||
The Taoiseach nominates the remaining members of the ], who are then, with the consent of the Dáil, appointed by the President. The Taoiseach also has authority to have fellow members of the cabinet dismissed from office. He or she is further responsible for appointing eleven members of the ]. | |||
{{refimprove section|date=March 2024}} | |||
Under the ], the Taoiseach is ].<ref>], ].</ref> They are then formally appointed to office by the President, who is required to appoint whomever the Dáil designates, without the option of declining to make the appointment. For this reason, the Taoiseach may, informally, be said to have been "elected" by Dáil Éireann. | |||
If the Taoiseach loses the support of a majority in Dáil Éireann, they are not automatically removed from office. Instead, they are compelled either to resign or to persuade the President to dissolve the Dáil and call new elections. If the President "in his absolute discretion" refuses to grant a dissolution, this effectively forces the Taoiseach to resign. To date, no President has ever refused a dissolution, although the option to exercise this prerogative arose in 1944 and 1994, and twice in 1982. The Taoiseach may lose the support of Dáil Éireann by the passage of a ], or implicitly, through the failure of a vote of confidence. Alternatively, the Dáil may ].{{efn|The Dáil refused supply in January 1982, when the then ]–] coalition government of ] lost a vote on the budget.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.rte.ie/news/elections2007/history80s.html |title=RTE Election 2007 |website=] |access-date=2 June 2008 |archive-date=10 May 2007 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20070510023531/http://www.rte.ie/news/elections2007/history80s.html |url-status=live }}</ref>}} In the event of the Taoiseach's resignation, they continue to exercise the duties and functions of office until the appointment of a successor. | |||
The Taoiseach nominates the remaining members of the ], who are then, with the consent of the Dáil, appointed by the President. The Taoiseach may advise the President to dismiss cabinet ministers from office; which the President does not have discretion on. The Taoiseach is responsible for appointing eleven members of the sixty members of the ]. | |||
The ] is the government department which supports and advises the Taoiseach in carrying out their various duties. The Taoiseach is assisted by one or more ], one of whom is the Government ]. | |||
===Salary=== | |||
Since 2013, the Taoiseach's annual salary is €185,350.<ref name=Journal.ie>{{cite news|first=Hugh|last=O'Connell|url=http://www.thejournal.ie/taoiseach-ministers-public-servants-pay-cuts-976714-Jul2013/|title=The Taoiseach, Ministers and every TD are having their pay cut today|work=]|date=4 July 2013|access-date=18 December 2013|archive-date=30 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171130150231/http://www.thejournal.ie/taoiseach-ministers-public-servants-pay-cuts-976714-Jul2013/|url-status=live}}</ref> It was cut from €214,187 to €200,000 when ] took office, before being cut further to €185,350 under the Haddington Road Agreement in 2013. | |||
A proposed increase of €38,000 in 2007 was deferred when ] became Taoiseach<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.rte.ie/news/2007/1025/politics.html|title=Taoiseach to receive €38k pay rise|publisher=]|date=25 October 2007|access-date=25 October 2007|archive-date=27 October 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071027035252/http://www.rte.ie/news/2007/1025/politics.html|url-status=live}}</ref> and in October 2008, the government announced a 10% salary cut for all ministers, including the Taoiseach.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.rte.ie/news/2008/1015/budget.html|title=Sharp exchanges in Dáil over Budget|publisher=]|date=15 October 2008|access-date=29 January 2009|archive-date=14 February 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090214034034/http://www.rte.ie/news/2008/1015/budget.html|url-status=live}}</ref> However this was a voluntary cut and the salaries remained nominally the same with both ministers and Taoiseach essentially refusing 10% of their salary. This caused controversy in December 2009 when a salary cut of 20% was based on the higher figure before the refused amount was deducted.<ref name="Paycuts criticised">{{cite web|url=http://www.independent.ie/national-news/budget/comment-reaction/opposition-says-lenihans-salary-cuts-do-not-add-up-1969628.html|title=Opposition says Lenihan's salary cuts do not add up|first=Fiach |last=Kelly|work=]|date=10 December 2009|access-date=29 December 2009|archive-date=23 December 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091223025956/http://www.independent.ie/national-news/budget/comment-reaction/opposition-says-lenihans-salary-cuts-do-not-add-up-1969628.html}}</ref> The Taoiseach is also allowed an additional €118,981 in annual expenses. | |||
===Residence=== | |||
There is no official residence of the Taoiseach. In 2008, it was reported speculatively that the former ] at ] adjoining the ] would become the official residence of the Taoiseach. However, no official statements were made nor any action taken.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.independent.ie/national-news/opulent-phoenix-park-lodge-is--set-to-become-fortress-cowen-1378987.html|title=Opulent Phoenix Park lodge is set to become 'Fortress Cowen'|first=Ronald|last=Quinlan|work=]|date=18 May 2008|access-date=18 May 2008|archive-date=21 May 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080521055535/http://www.independent.ie/national-news/opulent-phoenix-park-lodge-is--set-to-become-fortress-cowen-1378987.html}}</ref> The house, which forms part of the Farmleigh estate acquired by the State in 1999 for €29.2 million, was renovated at a cost of nearly €600,000 in 2005 by the ]. Former Taoiseach ] did not use it as a residence, but his successor Brian Cowen used it occasionally,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2009/0129/1232923372778.html|title=Cowen questioned on use of Farmleigh|first=Michael |last=O'Regan|newspaper=]|date=29 January 2009|access-date=29 January 2009|archive-date=18 November 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101118220220/http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2009/0129/1232923372778.html}}</ref> as did later Taoisigh Enda Kenny and Leo Varadkar, who each paid €50 per night for the use of the house to avoid benefit-in-kind tax being levied on them for use of the house as a grace and favour mansion.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/politics/2023/09/03/over-87000-spent-upgrading-underused-stewards-lodge-in-dublins-phoenix-park/|title=Over €87,000 spent upgrading underused Steward's Lodge in Dublin's Phoenix Park|first=Colin|last=Coyle|newspaper=]|date=3 September 2023|access-date=19 September 2023|archive-date=18 January 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240118201101/https://www.irishtimes.com/politics/2023/09/03/over-87000-spent-upgrading-underused-stewards-lodge-in-dublins-phoenix-park/|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
===Salute=== | |||
"{{lang|ga|Mór Chluana}}" ("More of ]") is a traditional air collected by ] in 1873.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://source.pipers.ie/Media.aspx?mediaId=24396&categoryId=907 |title=P. W. Joyce: Ancient Irish Music » 47 – Mór Chluana |publisher=Na Píobairí Uilleann |access-date=3 February 2014 |archive-date=21 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140221065107/http://source.pipers.ie/Media.aspx?mediaId=24396&categoryId=907 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="ainm">{{cite web |url=http://www.ainm.ie/Bio.aspx?ID=260 |title=Joyce, Patrick Weston (1827–1914) |work=Ainm.ie |publisher=Cló Iar-Chonnacht |language=Irish |access-date=3 February 2014 |archive-date=20 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140220180149/http://www.ainm.ie/Bio.aspx?ID=260 |url-status=live }}</ref> "Amhrán Dóchais" ("Song of Hope") is a poem written by ] in 1913.<ref name="ainm"/><ref name="cuiv">{{cite book |last=Ó Cuív |first=Brian |author-link=Brian Ó Cuív |editor=W. E. Vaughan |title=Ireland Under the Union, 1870–1921 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pYNeAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA425 |access-date=3 February 2014 |series=A New History of Ireland |volume=VI |date=1 April 2010 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=9780199583744 |page=425 |chapter=Irish language and literature, 1845–1921 |archive-date=27 June 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140627122510/http://books.google.com/books?id=pYNeAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA425 |url-status=live }}</ref> ] chose the air as his ].<ref name="cuiv"/> The salute is played by army bands on the arrival of the Taoiseach at state ceremonies. Though the salute is often called "{{lang|ga|Amhrán Dóchais}}", ] argued "{{lang|ga|Mór Chluana}}" is the correct title.<ref name="cuiv"/><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cmc.ie/music/amhran-dochais |title=Amhrán Dóchais |publisher=Contemporary Music Centre |access-date=3 February 2014 |archive-date=20 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171020063853/https://www.cmc.ie/music/amhran-dochais |url-status=live }}</ref> | |||
==History== | ==History== | ||
===Origins and etymology=== | |||
The words {{lang|ga|Taoiseach}} and {{lang|ga|]}} (deputy prime minister) are both from the ] and of ancient origin. Though the Taoiseach is described in the Constitution of Ireland as "the head of the Government or Prime Minister",{{efn|Article 13.1.1° and Article 28.5.1° of the ]. The latter provision reads: "The head of the Government, or Prime Minister, shall be called, and is in this Constitution referred to as, the Taoiseach."<ref>{{cite web |title=Constitution of Ireland |url=https://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/cons/en/html#article28_5_1 |website=Irish Statute Book}}</ref>|name="ConstitIrl"}} its literal translation is {{gloss|chieftain}} or {{gloss|leader}}.<ref name=youthzone>{{cite web|url=http://www.taoiseach.gov.ie/attached_files/Pdf%20files/School%20Pack.pdf|title=Youth Zone School Pack|work=]|access-date=23 June 2010|archive-date=2 December 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071202192318/http://www.taoiseach.gov.ie/attached_files/Pdf%20files/School%20Pack.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Although ], who introduced the title in 1937, was a democratic politician who had in the past associated with ], some have remarked that the meaning {{gloss|leader}} in 1937 made the title similar to the titles of ] dictators of the time, such as {{lang|de|Führer}} (for ]), {{lang|it|Duce}} (for ]) and {{lang|es|Caudillo}} (for ]).<ref name=McCarthy2010a>{{cite news |url=http://www.independent.ie/opinion/analysis/wt-became-the-most-ruthless-of-them-all-26621462.html |title=WT became the most ruthless of them all |newspaper=Irish Independent |first=John-Paul |last=McCarthy |date=10 January 2010 |access-date=22 November 2016 |quote=While Taoiseach itself carried with it some initially unpleasant assonances with Caudillo, Fuhrer and Duce, all but one of the 12 men who wielded the prime ministerial sceptre have managed to keep their megalomaniacal tendencies in check. |archive-date=22 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161122223743/http://www.independent.ie/opinion/analysis/wt-became-the-most-ruthless-of-them-all-26621462.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=Quigley1944a>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LOdQAQAAMAAJ&q=Taoiseach+Fuhrer+Duce+Caudillo |title=Great Gaels: Ireland at Peace in a World at War |first=Martin|last=Quigley |page=18 |date=1944 |access-date=22 November 2016 |quote=Eamon de Valera is {{lang|ga|An Taoiseach}} or "boss Gael." That title goes considerably beyond the English "prime minister" or the American "president." It is the Gaelic equivalent of the German "{{lang|de|Fuehrer}}," the Italian "{{lang|it|Duce}}" and the Spanish "{{lang|es|Caudillo}}."  |archive-date=12 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210912123429/https://books.google.com/books?id=LOdQAQAAMAAJ&q=Taoiseach+Fuhrer+Duce+Caudillo |url-status=live }} Published in New York, 1944 (publisher not identified); Original from ]; Digitised 6 May 2016</ref><ref name=IPA1970a>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Q-YWAAAAIAAJ&q=Fuhrer+Duce+Caudillo |title=Administration – Volume 18 |publisher=] |page=153 |date=1970 |access-date=22 November 2016 |quote=... and let alone the names of the Prime Minister (the Taoiseach, a word that is related to Duce, Fuhrer, and Caudillo) (translated from the original Irish: ... {{lang|ga|agus fiú amháin ainmeacha an Phríomh-Aire (An Taoiseach, focal go bhfuil gaol aige le Duce, Fuhrer, agus Caudillo)}} |archive-date=12 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210912123429/https://books.google.com/books?id=Q-YWAAAAIAAJ&q=Fuhrer+Duce+Caudillo |url-status=live }}Original from the ]; Digitised 6 December 2006</ref> {{lang|ga|Tánaiste}}, in turn, refers to the system of ], the ] system of succession whereby a leader would appoint an ] while still living. | |||
In ], {{lang|gd|tòiseach}} translates as '] chief' and both words originally had similar meanings in the ] of Scotland and Ireland.{{efn|name=BookCawdor|{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TFwJAAAAIAAJ |title=The book of the thanes of Cawdor: a series of papers selected from the charter room at Cawdor. 1236–1742, Volume 1236, Issue 1742 |publisher=] |author=John Frederick Vaughan Campbell Cawdor |editor-first=Innes |editor-last=Cosmo |year=1742 |page=xiii |access-date=23 June 2013 |quote=As we cannot name the first Celtic chieftain who consented to change his style of Toshach and his patriarchal sway for the title and stability of King's Thane of Cawdor, so it is impossible to fix the precise time when their ancient property and offices were acquired. }}}}<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ywZuLEa6oxsC&pg=PA32 |title=Scotland Under Her Early Kings: A History of the Kingdom to the Close of the Thirteenth Century Part One |publisher=] |first=E. William |last=Robertson |date=2004 |page=32 |isbn=9781417946075 |access-date=28 June 2013 |archive-date=12 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210912123430/https://books.google.com/books?id=ywZuLEa6oxsC&pg=PA32 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.dsl.ac.uk/getent4.php?plen=4336&startset=43732115&dtext=snd&query=TOISEACH |title=DSL – SND1 TOISEACH |access-date=27 June 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202232058/http://www.dsl.ac.uk/getent4.php?plen=4336&startset=43732115&dtext=snd&query=TOISEACH |archive-date=2 December 2013 }}</ref>{{efn|{{cite news |url=http://www.tartanregister.gov.uk/tartanDetails.aspx?ref=4140 |title=Tartan Details – Toshach |publisher=] |access-date=27 June 2013 |url-status=dead |quote=Toshach is an early Celtic title given to minor territorial chiefs in Scotland (note Eire Prime Minister's official title is this). |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131202222652/http://www.tartanregister.gov.uk/tartanDetails.aspx?ref=4140 |archive-date=2 December 2013 }}}} The related ] word {{lang|cy|]}} (current meaning: 'prince') has a similar origin and meaning.{{efn|name=Celtic_Culture|{{citation|title=Celtic Culture: a Historical Encyclopedia |author=John Thomas Koch |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2006 |isbn=1851094407 |page=1062 |quote=An early word meaning 'leader' appears on a 5th- or 6th-century inscribed stone as both ogam Irish and British genitive TOVISACI: {{lang|cy|tywysog}} now means 'prince' in Welsh, the regular descriptive title used for Prince Charles, for example; while in Ireland, the corresponding {{lang|ga|Taoiseach}} is now the correct title, in both Irish and English, for the Prime Minister of the Irish Republic (Éire).}}}} It is hypothesised that both derive ultimately from the ] {{lang|cel-x-proto|*]}} 'chieftain, leader'.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Sims-Williams |first=Patrick |date=Summer 1992 |title=The Additional Letters of the Ogam Alphabet |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yVopAQAAMAAJ&q=%22medieval+celtic+studies%22+towiss%C4%81kos |journal=Cambridge Medieval Celtic Studies |volume=23 |page=48 |access-date=11 December 2022 |archive-date=12 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210912123431/https://books.google.com/books?id=y9xQAQAAIAAJ&q=towissakos |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AncKAQAAMAAJ&q=towiss%C4%81kos |title=Language |first1=George Melville |last1=Bolling |first2=Bernard |last2=Bloch |date=27 June 1968 |publisher=Linguistic Society of America |via=] |access-date=3 October 2020 |archive-date=12 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210912123431/https://books.google.com/books?id=AncKAQAAMAAJ&q=towiss%C4%81kos |url-status=live }}</ref> | |||
The words ''Taoiseach'' and '']'' (the title of the deputy prime minister) are both from the ] and of ancient origin. Though the Taoiseach is described in the Constitution of Ireland as "the head of the Government or Prime Minister", <ref>Article 13.1.1° and Article 28.5.1°. The latter provision reads: "The head of the Government, or Prime Minister, shall be called, and is in this Constitution referred to as, the Taoiseach."</ref> its literal translation is "leader" or "chief". Some historians suggest that in ancient Ireland (whence these terms originate), a ''taoiseach'' was a minor king, while a ''tánaiste'' was a governor placed in a kingdom whose king had been deposed or, more usually, his heir-apparent. In ]; tòiseach translates as ] and both words originally had similar meaning in the Goidelic languages of Scotland and Ireland. The related ] word '']'' appears to have had a similar meaning. | |||
The plural of {{lang|ga|taoiseach}} is {{lang|ga|taoisigh}} (<small>Northern and Western</small> {{IPA-ga|ˈt̪ˠiːʃiː|lang}}, <small>Southern:</small> {{IPA-ga|ˈt̪ˠiːʃɪɟ|}}).<ref name=youthzone/> | |||
The modern position of Taoiseach was established by the 1937 ], to replace the position of ] of the 1922-1937 ]. The positions of Taoiseach and President of the Executive Council differed in certain fundamental respects. Under the ] the latter was vested with considerably less power and was largely just the cabinet's presiding officer. For example, the President of the Executive Council could not dismiss a fellow minister. The Free State's cabinet, the ] had to be disbanded and reformed entirely, in order to remove one of its number. The President of the Executive Council could also not personally seek a dissolution of Dáil Éireann from the head of state, that power belonging collectively to the Executive Council. In contrast, the Taoiseach created in 1937 possesses a much more powerful role. He can both instruct the President to dismiss ministers, and request a parliamentary dissolution on his own initiative. <ref>Among the most famous ministerial dismissals have been those of ] and ] during the ] in ], ] in ] and ], ] and ] in ].</ref> | |||
Although the Irish form {{lang|ga|An Taoiseach}} is sometimes used in English instead of 'the Taoiseach',<ref name=Oops2017-02-09a>{{cite web|url=http://www.taoiseach.gov.ie/eng/News/Taoiseach's_Press_Releases/Statement_by_An_Taoiseach_on_the_death_of_Cardinal_Desmond_Connell.html|title=Statement by An Taoiseach on the death of Cardinal Desmond Connell|publisher=Department of the Taoiseach|date=9 February 2017|access-date=5 March 2017|quote=The Taoiseach has learnt with regret …|archive-date=6 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170406113821/http://www.taoiseach.gov.ie/eng/News/Taoiseach%27s_Press_Releases/Statement_by_An_Taoiseach_on_the_death_of_Cardinal_Desmond_Connell.html|url-status=live}}</ref> the English version of the Constitution states that they "shall be called … the Taoiseach".{{efn|name="ConstitIrl"}} | |||
Historically, where there have been multi-party or coalition Governments, the Taoiseach has come from the leader of the largest party in the coalition. One exception to this was John A. Costello, who was not leader of his party, but an agreed choice to head the government, because the other parties refused to accept then ] leader ] as Taoiseach. | |||
== |
===Debate on the title=== | ||
In 1937 when the draft Constitution of Ireland was being debated in the ], ], an opposition politician, moved an amendment to substitute "Prime Minister" for the proposed "Taoiseach" title in the English text of the Constitution. It was proposed to keep the "Taoiseach" title in the Irish language text. The proponent remarked:<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181122141908/https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/debates/debate/dail/1937-05-26/ |date=22 November 2018 }}.</ref> | |||
{|style="margin: 0 0 1em 1em; border: 1px solid #8888aa; background: #f7f8ff; clear:right" align=right cellpadding=2 cellspacing=0 | |||
{{blockquote|It seems to me to be mere make-believe to try to incorporate a word like "Taoiseach" in the English language. It would be pronounced wrongly by 99 percent of the people. I have already ascertained it is a very difficult word to pronounce correctly. That being so, even for the sake of the dignity of the Irish language, it would be more sensible that when speaking English we should be allowed to refer to the gentleman in question as the Prime Minister... It is just one more example of the sort of things that are being done here as if for the purpose of putting off the people in the ]. No useful purpose of any kind can be served by compelling us, when speaking English, to refer to An Taoiseach rather than to the Prime Minister.}} | |||
! style="padding: 0 5px 0 5px; background:#ccccff" align="center" | Taoisigh of Ireland<br><small>by 1st appointment</small> | |||
The President of the Executive Council, Éamon de Valera, gave the term's meaning as "chieftain" or "Captain". He said he was "not disposed" to support the proposed amendment and felt the word "Taoiseach" did not need to be changed. The proposed amendment was defeated on a vote and "Taoiseach" was included as the title ultimately adopted by ].<ref>{{cite web |title=Bunreacht na hEireann (Dréacht)—Coiste (Ath-thógaint) – Dáil Éireann (8th Dáil) – Vol. 67 No. 9 |url=https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/debates/debate/dail/1937-05-26/speech/225/ |website=Oireachtas Debates |date=26 May 1937}}</ref> | |||
===Modern office=== | |||
] at ], ], Dublin]] | |||
The modern position of Taoiseach was established by the 1937 ] and is the most powerful role in Irish politics. The office replaced the position of ] of the 1922–1937 ]. | |||
The positions of Taoiseach and President of the Executive Council differed in certain fundamental respects. Under the ], the latter was vested with considerably less power and was largely just the chairman of the cabinet, the ]. For example, the President of the Executive Council could not dismiss a fellow minister on his own authority. Instead, the Executive Council had to be disbanded and reformed entirely to remove a member. The President of the Executive Council also did not have the right to advise the ] to dissolve Dáil Éireann on his own authority, that power belonging collectively to the Executive Council. | |||
In contrast, the Taoiseach created in 1937 possesses a much more powerful role. The holder of the position can both advise the President to dismiss ministers and dissolve Parliament on his own authority—advice that the President is almost always required to follow by convention.{{efn|Notable ministerial dismissals include those of ] and ] during the ] in 1970, ] in 1990, ], ] and ] in 1991, and ] in 2020.}} His role is greatly enhanced because, under the Constitution, he is both {{lang|la|de jure}} and {{lang|la|de facto}} chief executive. In most other parliamentary democracies, the head of state is at least the nominal chief executive, while being bound by convention to act on the advice of the cabinet. In Ireland, however, executive power is explicitly vested in the Government, of which the Taoiseach is the leader. | |||
Since the Taoiseach is the head of government, and may remove ministers at will, many of the powers specified, in law or the constitution, to be exercised by the government as a collective body, are in reality at the will of the Taoiseach. The Government almost always backs the Taoiseach in major decisions, and in many cases often merely formalises that decision at a subsequent meeting after it has already been announced. Nevertheless, the need for collective decision-making on paper acts as a safeguard against an unwise decision made by the Taoiseach. | |||
Generally, where there have been multi-party or coalition governments, the Taoiseach has been the leader of the largest party in the coalition. One exception to this was ], who was not the leader of his party, but an agreed choice to head the government, because the other parties refused to accept then ] leader ] as Taoiseach. In 2011 Taoiseach Brian Cowen, resigned as party leader and was succeeded by ], but continued as Taoiseach until the formation of a new government following a general election. | |||
==List of office holders== | |||
{{main|Irish heads of government since 1919|Records of Irish heads of government since 1922}} | |||
Before the enactment of the ], the head of government was the ]. This office was held by ] of ] from 1922 to 1932, and by ] of ] from 1932 to 1937. By convention, Taoisigh are numbered to include Cosgrave;<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/9feb2a-former-taoisigh/|title=Former Taoisigh|website=Government of Ireland|date=November 2018 |access-date=19 January 2020|archive-date=4 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200304162522/https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/9feb2a-former-taoisigh/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/breaking/2008/0507/breaking7.htm|title=Coughlan new Tánaiste in Cowen Cabinet|newspaper=]|date=17 May 2008|access-date=17 May 2008|archive-date=12 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210912123432/https://www.irishtimes.com/news/coughlan-new-t%C3%A1naiste-in-cowen-cabinet-1.822339}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.rte.ie/news/2008/0507/fiannafail.html|title=Taoiseach reveals new front bench|publisher=]|date=7 May 2008|access-date=17 May 2008|archive-date=10 May 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080510112700/http://www.rte.ie/news/2008/0507/fiannafail.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/mhgbausnidau/|title=Cowen confirmed as Taoiseach|work=BreakingNews.ie|date=7 May 2008|access-date=17 May 2008|archive-date=10 May 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080510161334/http://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/mhgbausnidau/}}</ref> therefore, Micheál Martin is considered the 15th Taoiseach, not the 14th. | |||
{|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" | |||
|- | |- | ||
|colspan=11| | |||
| ] (Appointed first 1937)</small>]] | |||
===President of the Executive Council=== | |||
|- | |- | ||
!{{Abbr|No.|Number}} | |||
| ] (1948)</small>]] | |||
!Portrait | |||
!width=20% |Name<br />{{small|(Birth–Death)}}<br />Constituency | |||
!colspan=2 width=15% |Term of office | |||
!Party | |||
!colspan=2 width=20% |Exec. Council<br />{{small|Composition}} | |||
!colspan=2 width=15% |] | |||
!Dáil<br />(elected) | |||
|- | |- | ||
!style="background:{{party color|Cumann na nGaedheal}}; color:white;" rowspan=5 |1 | |||
| ] (1959)</small>]] | |||
|rowspan=5 |{{CSS image crop|Image =William Thomas Cosgrave.jpg|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
|rowspan=5 |''']'''<br />{{small|(1880–1965)<br />TD for ] until 1927<br />TD for ] from 1927}} | |||
|rowspan=5 |{{small|6 December}}<br />1922{{efn|Cosgrave was ] from 22 August 1922, during the transitional period before the state became officially independent on 6 December 1922 (See ]). |name="CosgravePreIndependence"}} | |||
|rowspan=5 |{{small|9 March}}<br />1932 | |||
|] | |||
|] | |||
|{{small|] (minority)}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Cumann na nGaedheal}}" rowspan=5 | | |||
|rowspan=2 |] | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |- | ||
|rowspan=4 |] | |||
| ] (1966)</small>]] | |||
|] | |||
|rowspan=4 |{{small|] (minority)}} | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |- | ||
|] | |||
| ] (1973)</small>]] | |||
|rowspan=3 |] | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |- | ||
|] | |||
| ] (1979)</small>]] | |||
|rowspan=2 |] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |- | ||
|] | |||
| ] (1981)</small>]] | |||
|- | |- | ||
!style="background:{{party color|Fianna Fáil}}; color:white;" rowspan=3 |2 | |||
| ] (1992)</small>]] | |||
|rowspan=3 |{{CSS image crop|Image =Éamon de Valera.jpg|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
|rowspan=3 |''']'''<br />{{small|(1882–1975)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|rowspan=3 |{{small|9 March}}<br />1932{{efn|De Valera was ] in the pre-independence revolutionary Irish Government from 1 April 1919 to 9 January 1922 (See ]).|name="DeValeraPreIndependence"}} | |||
|rowspan=3 |{{small|29 December}}<br />1937 | |||
|rowspan=3 |] | |||
|] | |||
|rowspan=3 |{{small|] (minority)}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" rowspan=3 | | |||
|rowspan=3 |] | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |- | ||
|] | |||
| ] (1994)</small>]] | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |- | ||
|] | |||
| ] (1997)</small>]] | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|} | |||
|- | |||
|colspan=11 | | |||
===Taoiseach=== | |||
''Main articles: ], ]'' | |||
{| class="wikitable" | |||
|- bgcolor="CCCCCC" | |||
! width="2%"| | |||
! width="2%"|'''#''' | |||
! width="24%"|'''Name ''' | |||
! width="16%"|'''Took Office''' | |||
! width="16%"|'''Left Office''' | |||
! width="7%"|'''Elected''' | |||
! width="15%"|''' Party''' | |||
|- | |- | ||
!{{Abbr|No.|Number}} | |||
!Portrait | |||
!width=20% |Name<br />{{small|(Birth–Death)}}<br />Constituency | |||
!colspan=2 width=15% |Term of office | |||
!Party | |||
!colspan=2 width=20% |Government<br />{{small|Composition}} | |||
!colspan=2 width=15% |] | |||
!Dáil<br />(elected) | |||
|- | |- | ||
!style="background:{{party color|Fianna Fáil}}; color:white;" rowspan=4 |{{small|(2)}} | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FF}}| | |||
|rowspan=4 |{{CSS image crop|Image =Éamon de Valera.jpg|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
|1. | |||
|]<br>( |
|rowspan=4 |''']'''<br />{{small|(1882–1975)<br />TD for ]}} | ||
|rowspan=4 |{{small|29 December}}<br />1937 | |||
|], ] | |||
|rowspan=4 |{{small|18 February}}<br />1948 | |||
|], ] | |||
|rowspan=4 |] | |||
| 4 terms | |||
|] | |||
| ] | |||
|{{small|] (minority)}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" rowspan=3 | | |||
|rowspan=3 |] | |||
|] {{small|( ···· )}} | |||
|- | |- | ||
|] | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FG}}| | |||
|{{small|]}} | |||
|2. | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|]<br>(''1st term of 2'') | |||
|], ] | |||
|], ] | |||
| 1 term | |||
| ] | |||
|- | |- | ||
|] | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FF}}| | |||
|{{small|] (minority)}} | |||
| | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|]<br>(''2nd term of 3'') | |||
|], ] | |||
|], ] | |||
| 1 term | |||
| ] | |||
|- | |- | ||
|] | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FG}}| | |||
|{{small|]}} | |||
| | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" | | |||
|]<br>(''2nd term of 2'') | |||
|] |
|] | ||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|], ] | |||
| 1 term | |||
| ] | |||
|- | |- | ||
!style="background:{{party color|Fine Gael}}; color:white;" |3 | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FF}}| | |||
|{{CSS image crop|Image =John A. Costello, 1948.png|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
| | |||
|''']'''<br />{{small|(1891–1976)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|]<br>(''3rd term of 3'') | |||
|{{small|18 February}}<br />1948 | |||
|], ] | |||
|{{small|13 June}}<br />1951 | |||
|], ] | |||
|] | |||
| 1 term | |||
|] | |||
| ] | |||
|{{small|]–]–]–]–]–]}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Labour Party (Ireland)}}" | | |||
|] | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |- | ||
!style="background:{{party color|Fianna Fáil}}; color:white;" |{{small|(2)}} | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FF}}| | |||
|{{CSS image crop|Image =Éamon de Valera.jpg|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
|3. | |||
|''']'''<br />{{small|(1882–1975)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|] | |||
|{{small|13 June}}<br />1951 | |||
|], ] | |||
|{{small|2 June}}<br />1954 | |||
|], ] | |||
|] | |||
| 1 term | |||
|] | |||
| ] | |||
|{{small|] (minority)}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" | | |||
|] | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |- | ||
!style="background:{{party color|Fine Gael}}; color:white;" |{{small|(3)}} | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FF}}| | |||
|{{CSS image crop|Image =John A. Costello, 1948.png|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
|4. | |||
|''']'''<br />{{small|(1891–1976)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|]<br>(''1st term of 2'') | |||
|{{small|2 June}}<br />1954 | |||
|], ] | |||
|{{small|20 March}}<br />1957 | |||
|], ] | |||
|] | |||
| 2 terms | |||
|] | |||
| ] | |||
|{{small|]–]–]}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Labour Party (Ireland)}}" | | |||
|] | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |- | ||
!style="background:{{party color|Fianna Fáil}}; color:white;" |{{small|(2)}} | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FG}}| | |||
|{{CSS image crop|Image =Éamon de Valera.jpg|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
|5. | |||
|''']'''<br />{{small|(1882–1975)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|] | |||
|{{small|20 March}}<br />1957 | |||
|], ] | |||
|{{small|23 June}}<br />1959 | |||
|], ] | |||
|] | |||
| 1 term | |||
|] | |||
| ] | |||
|{{small|]}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" | | |||
|] | |||
|rowspan=2 |] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |- | ||
!style="background:{{party color|Fianna Fáil}}; color:white;" rowspan=3 |4 | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FF}}| | |||
|rowspan=3 |{{CSS image crop|Image =Seán Lemass, 1966.jpg|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
| | |||
|rowspan=3 |''']'''<br />{{small|(1899–1971)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|]<br>(''2nd term of 2'') | |||
|rowspan=3 |{{small|23 June}}<br />1959 | |||
|], ] | |||
|rowspan=3 |{{small|10 November}}<br />1966 | |||
|], ] | |||
|rowspan=3 |] | |||
| 1 term | |||
|] | |||
| ] | |||
|{{small|]}} | |||
|rowspan=2 style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" | | |||
|rowspan=2 |] | |||
|- | |- | ||
|] | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FF}}| | |||
|{{small|] (minority)}} | |||
|6. | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|]<br>(''1st term of 3'') | |||
|], ] | |||
|], ] | |||
| 1 term | |||
| ] | |||
|- | |- | ||
|] | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FG}}| | |||
|{{small|]}} | |||
|7. | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" rowspan="2" | | |||
|]<br>(''1st term of 2'') | |||
|rowspan=2 |] | |||
|], ] | |||
|rowspan=2 |] {{small|(])}} | |||
|], ] | |||
| 1 term | |||
| ] | |||
|- | |- | ||
!style="background:{{party color|Fianna Fáil}}; color:white;" rowspan=2 |5 | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FF}}| | |||
|rowspan=2 |{{CSS image crop|Image =Jack Lynch 1979 (cropped).jpg|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
| | |||
|rowspan=2 |''']'''<br />{{small|(1917–1999)<br />TD for ] until 1969<br />TD for ] from 1969}} | |||
|]<br>(''2nd term of 3'') | |||
|rowspan=2 |{{small|10 November}}<br />1966 | |||
|], ] | |||
|rowspan=2 |{{small|14 March}}<br />1973 | |||
|], ] | |||
|rowspan=2 |] | |||
| 1 term | |||
|] | |||
| ] | |||
|{{small|]}} | |||
|- | |- | ||
|] | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FG}}| | |||
|{{small|]}} | |||
| | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" | | |||
|]<br>(''2nd term of 2'') | |||
|] | |||
|], ] | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|], ] | |||
| 1 term | |||
| ] | |||
|- | |- | ||
!style="background:{{party color|Fine Gael}}; color:white;" |6 | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FF}}| | |||
|{{CSS image crop|Image =Taoiseach Liam Cosgrave-Patricks Day 1976.jpg|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
| | |||
|''']'''<br />{{small|(1920–2017)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|]<br>(''3rd term of 3'') | |||
|{{small|14 March}}<br />1973 | |||
|], ] | |||
|{{small|5 July}}<br />1977 | |||
|], ] | |||
|] | |||
| 2 terms | |||
|] | |||
| ] | |||
|{{small|]–]}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Labour Party (Ireland)}}" | | |||
|] | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |- | ||
!style="background:{{party color|Fianna Fáil}}; color:white;" |{{small|(5)}} | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FF}}| | |||
|{{CSS image crop|Image =Jack Lynch 1979 (cropped).jpg|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
|8. | |||
|''']'''<br />{{small|(1917–1999)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|] | |||
|{{small|5 July}}<br />1977 | |||
|], ] | |||
| |
|{{small|11 December}}<br />1979 | ||
|] | |||
| 1 term | |||
|] | |||
| ] | |||
|{{small|]}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" rowspan="2" | | |||
|rowspan=2 |] | |||
|rowspan=2 |] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |- | ||
!style="background:{{party color|Fianna Fáil}}; color:white;" |7 | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FG}}| | |||
|{{CSS image crop|Image =Charles Haughey 1989 (headshot).png|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
|9. | |||
|''']'''<br />{{small|(1925–2006)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|] | |||
| |
|{{small|11 December}}<br />1979 | ||
|{{small|30 June}}<br />1981 | |||
|], ] | |||
|] | |||
| 1 term | |||
|] | |||
| ] | |||
|{{small|]}} | |||
|- | |- | ||
!style="background:{{party color|Fine Gael}}; color:white;" |8 | |||
|{{Irish politics/party colours/FF}}| | |||
|{{CSS image crop|Image =Garret FitzGerald 1975 (cropped).jpg|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
|10. | |||
|''']'''<br />{{small|(1926–2011)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|{{small|30 June}}<br />1981 | |||
|{{small|9 March}}<br />1982 | |||
|] | |||
|] | |||
|{{small|]–] (minority)}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Labour Party (Ireland)}}" | | |||
|] | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |||
!style="background:{{party color|Fianna Fáil}}; color:white;" |{{small|(7)}} | |||
|{{CSS image crop|Image =Charles Haughey 1989 (headshot).png|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
|''']'''<br />{{small|(1925–2006)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|{{small|9 March}}<br />1982 | |||
|{{small|14 December}}<br />1982 | |||
|] | |||
|] | |||
|{{small|] (minority)}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" | | |||
|] | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |||
!style="background:{{party color|Fine Gael}}; color:white;" rowspan=2 |{{small|(8)}} | |||
|rowspan=2 |{{CSS image crop|Image =Garret FitzGerald 1975 (cropped).jpg|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
|rowspan=2 |''']'''<br />{{small|(1926–2011)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|rowspan=2 |{{small|14 December}}<br />1982 | |||
|rowspan=2 |{{small|10 March}}<br />1987 | |||
|rowspan=2 |] | |||
|rowspan=2 |] | |||
|rowspan=2 |{{small|]–]<br />] (minority) from Jan 1987}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Labour Party (Ireland)}}" | | |||
|] | |||
|rowspan=2 |] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Fine Gael}}" | | |||
|] | |||
|- | |||
!style="background:{{party color|Fianna Fáil}}; color:white;" rowspan=3 |{{small|(7)}} | |||
|rowspan=3 |{{CSS image crop|Image =Charles Haughey 1989 (headshot).png|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
|rowspan=3 |''']'''<br />{{small|(1925–2006)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|rowspan=3 |{{small|10 March}}<br />1987 | |||
|rowspan=3 |{{small|11 February}}<br />1992 | |||
|rowspan=3 |] | |||
|] | |||
|{{small|] (minority)}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" rowspan="2" | | |||
|rowspan=2 |] | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |||
|rowspan=2 |] | |||
|rowspan=2 |{{small|]–]}} | |||
|rowspan=3 |] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |||
|rowspan=2 style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" | | |||
|rowspan=2 |] | |||
|- | |||
!style="background:{{party color|Fianna Fáil}}; color:white;" rowspan=3 |9 | |||
|rowspan=3 |{{CSS image crop|Image =Albert Reynolds (cropped).jpg|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
|rowspan=3 |''']'''<br />{{small|(1932–2014)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|rowspan=3 |{{small|11 February}}<br />1992 | |||
|rowspan=3 |{{small|15 December}}<br />1994 | |||
|rowspan=3 |] | |||
|] | |||
|{{small|]–]<br />] (minority) from Nov 1992}} | |||
|- | |||
|rowspan=2 |] | |||
|rowspan=2 |{{small|]–]<br />] (minority) from Nov 1994}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Labour Party (Ireland)}}" | | |||
|] | |||
|rowspan=3 |] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" | | |||
|] | |] | ||
|- | |||
|], ] | |||
!style="background:{{party color|Fine Gael}}; color:white;" |10 | |||
|''Current Incumbent'' | |||
|{{CSS image crop|Image =John Bruton, February 2002 (cropped 02).jpg|bSize = 60|cWidth = 60|cHeight = 80|oTop = 0|oLeft = 0}} | |||
| 2 terms | |||
|''']'''<br />{{small|(1947–2024)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|{{small|15 December}}<br />1994 | |||
|{{small|26 June}}<br />1997 | |||
|] | |||
|] | |||
|{{small|]–]–]}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Labour Party (Ireland)}}" | | |||
|] | |||
|- | |||
!rowspan=4 style="background:{{party color|Fianna Fáil}}; color:white;" |11 | |||
|rowspan=4 |{{CSS image crop|Image=Bertie Ahern 2006 (cropped).jpg|bSize=60|cWidth=60|cHeight=80|oTop=0|oLeft=0}} | |||
|rowspan=4 |''']'''<br />{{small|(b. 1951)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|rowspan=4 |{{small|26 June}}<br />1997 | |||
|rowspan=4 |{{small|7 May}}<br />2008 | |||
|rowspan=4 |] | |||
|] | |||
|{{small|]–] (minority)}} | |||
|rowspan=3 style="background-color: {{party color|Progressive Democrats}}" | | |||
|rowspan=2 |] | |||
|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |||
|rowspan=2 |] | |||
|rowspan=2 |{{small|]–]}} | |||
|rowspan=2 |] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |||
|] | |||
|- | |||
|] | |||
|{{small|]–]–]}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" | | |||
|] | |||
|rowspan=2 |] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |||
!style="background:{{party color|Fianna Fáil}}; color:white;" |12 | |||
|{{CSS image crop|Image=Brian Cowen, June 2010 (cropped).jpg|bSize=60|cWidth=60|cHeight=80|oTop=0|oLeft=0}} | |||
|''']'''<br />{{small|(b. 1960)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|{{small|7 May}}<br />2008 | |||
|{{small|9 March}}<br />2011 | |||
|] | |||
|] | |||
|{{small|]–]–]<br />]–]–] from Nov 2009<br />] (minority) from Jan 2011}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" | | |||
|] | |||
|- | |||
!rowspan=3 style="background:{{party color|Fine Gael}}; color:white;" |13 | |||
|rowspan=3 |{{CSS image crop|Image=Enda Kenny EPP 2014 (cropped).jpg|bSize=60|cWidth=60|cHeight=80|oTop=0|oLeft=0}} | |||
|rowspan=3 |''']'''<br />{{small|(b. 1951)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
|rowspan=3 |{{small|9 March}}<br />2011 | |||
|rowspan=3 |{{small|14 June}}<br />2017<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.rte.ie/news/2017/0613/882267-enda-kenny/|title=Kenny's farewell: 'This has never been about me'|date=13 June 2017|publisher=]|access-date=14 June 2017|archive-date=13 June 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170613035137/https://www.rte.ie/news/2017/0613/882267-enda-kenny/|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
|rowspan=3 |] | |||
|rowspan=2 |] | |||
|rowspan=2 |{{small|]–]}} | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Labour Party (Ireland)}}" | | |||
|] | |||
|rowspan=2 |] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |||
|style="background-color: {{party color|Labour Party (Ireland)}}" | | |||
|] | |||
|- | |||
|] | |||
|{{small|]–] (minority)}} | |||
| rowspan="3" style="background-color: {{party color|Fine Gael}}" | | |||
|rowspan=2|] | |||
|rowspan=3|] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |||
! rowspan="2" style="background:{{party color|Fine Gael}}; color:white;" |14 | |||
| rowspan="2" |{{CSS image crop|Image=Leo Varadkar, December 2022 (cropped).jpg|bSize=60|cWidth=60|cHeight=80|oTop=0|oLeft=0}} | |||
| rowspan="2" |''']'''<br />{{small|(b. 1979)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
| rowspan="2" |{{small|14 June}}<br />2017<ref name=IrishTimes2017-06-08a>{{cite news|last1=Lord|first1=Miriam|title=Taoiseach-in-waiting meets man waiting to be taoiseach|url=http://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/leo-varadkar-the-man-who-evolved-into-a-taoiseach-1.3106073|access-date=10 June 2017|newspaper=The Irish Times|date=8 June 2017|archive-date=8 June 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170608013704/http://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/leo-varadkar-the-man-who-evolved-into-a-taoiseach-1.3106073|url-status=live}}</ref> | |||
| rowspan="2" |{{small|27 June}}<br />2020 | |||
| rowspan="2" |] | |||
| rowspan="2" |] | |||
| rowspan="2" |{{small|]–] (minority)}} | |||
|- | |||
| ] | |||
|- | |||
! style="background:{{party color|Fianna Fáil}}; color:white;" |15 | |||
| {{CSS image crop|Image=Micheál Martin TD (cropped).jpg|bSize=60|cWidth=60|cHeight=80|oTop=0|oLeft=0}} | |||
| ''']'''<br />{{small|(b. 1960)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
| {{small|27 June}}<br />2020 | |||
| <!-- {{small|17 December}}<br />2022 --> |{{small|17 December}}<br />2022 | |||
| ] | | ] | ||
| ] | |||
</table> | |||
| {{small|]–]–]}} | |||
| style="background-color: {{party color|Fine Gael}}" | | |||
| ] | |||
| rowspan="3" | ] {{small|(])}} | |||
|- | |||
! rowspan="1" style="background:{{party color|Fine Gael}}; color:white;" |{{small|(14)}} | |||
| rowspan="1" |{{CSS image crop|Image=Leo Varadkar, December 2022 (cropped).jpg|bSize=60|cWidth=60|cHeight=80|oTop=0|oLeft=0}} | |||
| rowspan="1" |''']'''<br />{{small|(b. 1979)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
| rowspan="1" |{{small|17 December}}<br />2022 | |||
| rowspan="1" |{{small|9 April}}<br />2024 | |||
| rowspan="1" |] | |||
| rowspan="1" |] | |||
| {{small|]–]–]}} | |||
| style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" | | |||
| rowspan="2" |] | |||
|- | |||
! rowspan="1" style="background:{{party color|Fine Gael}}; color:white;" |16 | |||
| rowspan="1" |{{CSS image crop|Image=Simon Harris (2024) (cropped).jpg|bSize=60|cWidth=60|cHeight=80|oTop=0|oLeft=0}} | |||
| rowspan="1" |''']'''<br />{{small|(b. 1986)<br />TD for ]}} | |||
| rowspan="1" |{{small|9 April}}<br />2024 | |||
| rowspan="1" | | |||
| rowspan="1" |] | |||
| rowspan="1" |] | |||
| {{small|]–]–]}} | |||
| style="background-color: {{party color|Fianna Fáil}}" | | |||
|} | |||
==Timeline== | |||
===Living former Taoisigh=== | |||
<div style="overflow:auto"> | |||
{{#tag:timeline| | |||
Define $width = 1000 # 4 pixels per year ($end - $start) × 4 | |||
Define $warning = 880 # $width - 120 | |||
Define $height = 500 # 16 × 25 + 150 | |||
Define $footnote = 800 # $width - 400 | |||
DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy | |||
* ] | |||
Period = from:01/01/1880 till:31/12/{{#expr:{{#time:Y}}}} | |||
* ] | |||
Define $start = 01/01/1880 # Just before eldest (Cosgrave) was born | |||
* ] | |||
Define $end = 31/12/{{CURRENTYEAR}} | |||
* ] | |||
Define $now = {{#time:d/m/Y|-3 hours}} | |||
ImageSize = width:$width height:$height | |||
There have never been more than six former Taoisigh alive at any one time. This has occurred only once: | |||
PlotArea = right:10 left:1 bottom:80 top:60 | |||
* From ], ] to ], ], ], ], ], ], ] and ] were living, from the time Bruton left office until the death of Lynch. | |||
Period = from:$start till:$end | |||
TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal | |||
Legend = orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:1 | |||
Colors = | |||
==Footnotes== | |||
id:bg value:white | |||
id:lightline value:rgb(0.8, 0.8, 0.8) | |||
id:lighttext value:rgb(0.5, 0.5, 0.5) | |||
id:LIFESPAN value:rgb(0.88, 0.90, 0.70) Legend: Lifespan | |||
id:CnnG value:rgb(0.6, 0.8, 0.9) Legend: Cumann_na_nGaedheal | |||
id:FF value:rgb(0.4, 0.7, 0.4) Legend: Fianna_Fáil | |||
id:FG value:rgb(0.4, 0.6, 0.9) Legend: Fine_Gael | |||
id:NAME value:rgb(0.15, 0.13, 0.05) | |||
id:TODAY value:green | |||
BackgroundColors = canvas:bg | |||
<references/> | |||
ScaleMinor = gridcolor:lightline unit:year increment:1 start:$start | |||
ScaleMajor = gridcolor:lighttext unit:year increment:10 start:1880 | |||
Define $dy = -5 # shift text to button side of bar | |||
==See also== | |||
*] | |||
LineData= | |||
*] | |||
at:$now color:TODAY width:0.1 | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
PlotData= | |||
*] | |||
bar:1 width:18 | |||
*] | |||
color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M | |||
from:05/06/1880 till:06/12/1922 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:] | |||
color:LIFESPAN | |||
from:06/12/1922 till:16/11/1965 | |||
color:CnnG | |||
from:06/12/1922 till:09/03/1932 | |||
bar:2 width:18 | |||
color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M | |||
from:14/10/1882 till:09/03/1932 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:] | |||
color:LIFESPAN | |||
from:09/03/1932 till:29/08/1975 | |||
color:FF | |||
from:09/03/1932 till:18/02/1948 | |||
color:FF | |||
from:13/06/1951 till:02/06/1954 | |||
color:FF | |||
from:20/03/1957 till:23/06/1959 | |||
bar:3 width:18 | |||
color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M | |||
from:20/06/1891 till:18/02/1948 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:] | |||
color:LIFESPAN | |||
from:18/02/1948 till:05/01/1976 | |||
color:FG | |||
from:18/02/1948 till:13/06/1951 | |||
color:FG | |||
from:02/06/1954 till:20/03/1957 | |||
bar:4 width:18 | |||
color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M | |||
from:15/07/1899 till:23/06/1959 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:] | |||
color:LIFESPAN | |||
from:23/06/1959 till:11/05/1971 | |||
color:FF | |||
from:23/06/1959 till:10/11/1966 | |||
bar:5 width:18 | |||
color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M | |||
from:15/08/1917 till:10/11/1966 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:] | |||
color:LIFESPAN | |||
from:10/11/1966 till:20/10/1999 | |||
color:FF | |||
from:10/11/1966 till:14/03/1973 | |||
color:FF | |||
from:05/07/1977 till:11/12/1979 | |||
bar:6 width:18 | |||
color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M | |||
from:13/04/1920 till:14/03/1973 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:] | |||
color:LIFESPAN | |||
from:14/03/1973 till:04/10/2017 | |||
color:FG | |||
from:14/03/1973 till:05/07/1977 | |||
bar:7 width:18 | |||
color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M | |||
from:16/09/1925 till:11/12/1979 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:] | |||
color:LIFESPAN | |||
from:11/12/1979 till:13/06/2006 | |||
color:FF | |||
from:11/12/1979 till:30/06/1981 | |||
color:FF | |||
from:09/03/1982 till:14/12/1982 | |||
color:FF | |||
from:10/03/1987 till:11/02/1992 | |||
bar:8 width:18 | |||
color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M | |||
from:09/02/1926 till:30/06/1981 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:] | |||
color:LIFESPAN | |||
from:30/06/1981 till:19/05/2011 | |||
color:FG | |||
from:30/06/1981 till:09/03/1982 | |||
color:FG | |||
from:14/12/1982 till:10/03/1987 | |||
bar:9 width:18 | |||
color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M | |||
from:03/11/1932 till:11/02/1992 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:] | |||
color:LIFESPAN | |||
from:11/02/1992 till:21/08/2014 | |||
color:FF | |||
from:11/02/1992 till:15/12/1994 | |||
bar:10 width:18 | |||
color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M | |||
from:18/05/1947 till:15/12/1994 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:] | |||
color:LIFESPAN | |||
from:15/12/1994 till:06/02/2024 | |||
color:FG | |||
from:15/12/1994 till:26/06/1997 | |||
bar:11 width:18 | |||
color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M | |||
from:12/09/1951 till:26/06/1997 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:] | |||
color:LIFESPAN | |||
from:26/06/1997 till:$now | |||
color:FF | |||
from:26/06/1997 till:07/05/2008 | |||
bar:12 width:18 | |||
color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M | |||
from:10/01/1960 till:07/05/2008 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:] | |||
color:LIFESPAN | |||
from:07/05/2008 till:$now | |||
color:FF | |||
from:07/05/2008 till:09/03/2011 | |||
bar:13 width:18 | |||
color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M | |||
from:24/04/1951 till:09/03/2011 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:] | |||
color:LIFESPAN | |||
from:09/03/2011 till:$now | |||
color:FG | |||
from:09/03/2011 till:14/06/2017 | |||
bar:14 width:18 | |||
color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M | |||
from:18/01/1979 till:14/06/2017 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:] | |||
color:LIFESPAN | |||
from:14/06/2017 till:$now | |||
color:FG | |||
from:14/06/2017 till:27/06/2020 | |||
color:FG | |||
from:17/12/2022 till:09/04/2024 | |||
bar:15 width:18 | |||
color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M | |||
from:01/08/1960 till:27/06/2020 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:] | |||
color:LIFESPAN | |||
from:27/06/2020 till:$now | |||
color:FF | |||
from:27/06/2020 till:17/12/2022 | |||
bar:16 width:18 | |||
color:LIFESPAN align:center fontsize:M | |||
from:17/10/1986 till:09/04/2024 shift:(-0,$dy) textcolor:NAME text:] | |||
color:LIFESPAN | |||
from:09/04/2024 till:$now | |||
color:FG | |||
from:09/04/2024 till:$now | |||
TextData = | |||
fontsize:M | |||
textcolor:green | |||
pos:($warning,30) | |||
text:Updated {{CURRENTMONTH}}/{{CURRENTYEAR}} | |||
TextData = | |||
pos:(290,$height) | |||
fontsize:L | |||
textcolor:black | |||
text:"Lifespan and terms of office of each Taoiseach" | |||
}}</div> | |||
==Further reading== | ==Further reading== | ||
*{{cite book |last=Farrell |first=Brian |author-link=Brian Farrell (broadcaster) |year=1971 |title=Chairman or Chief?: The Role of the Taoiseach in Irish Government |publisher=]}} | |||
The book ''Chairman or Chief: The Role of the Taoiseach in Irish Government (1971)'' by ] provides a good overview of the conflicting roles for An Taoiseach. Though long out of print, it may still be available in libraries or from AbeBooks. Biographies are also available of de Valera, Lemass, Lynch, Cosgrave, FitzGerald, Haughey, Reynolds and Ahern. FitzGerald wrote an autobiography, while an authorised biography was produced of de Valera. | |||
*{{Cite book |last=O'Malley |first=Eoin |title=Governing Ireland: From cabinet government to delegated governance |publisher=] |year=2012 |editor-last=O'Malley |editor-first=Eoin |location=Dublin |chapter=The Apex of Government: Cabinet and Taoiseach in operation |editor-last2=MacCarthaigh |editor-first2=Muiris}}. | |||
*{{Cite news |last=Gwynn Morgan |first=David |date=8 March 2016 |title=What exactly is a caretaker taoiseach? |newspaper=The Irish Times |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/david-gwynn-morgan-what-exactly-is-a-caretaker-taoiseach-1.2563548}} | |||
===Biographies=== | |||
Biographies are also available of de Valera, Lemass, Lynch, Cosgrave, FitzGerald, Haughey, Reynolds and Ahern. FitzGerald wrote an autobiography, while an authorised biography was produced of de Valera. | |||
'''Some |
'''Some biographies and memoirs of former Taoisigh and presidents of the Executive Council:''' | ||
*Tim Pat Coogan, '' |
*Tim Pat Coogan, ''Éamon de Valera'' | ||
*John Horgan, '' |
*John Horgan, ''Seán Lemass'' | ||
*Brian Farrell, '' |
*Brian Farrell, ''Seán Lemass'' | ||
*T.P. O'Mahony, ''Jack Lynch: A Biography'' | *T. P. O'Mahony, ''Jack Lynch: A Biography'' | ||
*T. Ryle Dwyer, ''Nice Fellow: A Biography of Jack Lynch'' | *T. Ryle Dwyer, ''Nice Fellow: A Biography of Jack Lynch'' | ||
*Stephen Collins, ''The Cosgrave |
*Stephen Collins, ''The Cosgrave Legacy'' | ||
*Garret FitzGerald, ''All in a Life'' | *Garret FitzGerald, ''All in a Life'' | ||
*Garret FitzGerald, ''Just Garret: Tales from the Political Frontline'' | |||
*Raymond Smith, ''Garret: The Enigma'' | *Raymond Smith, ''Garret: The Enigma'' | ||
*T.Ryle Dwyer, ''Short Fellow: A Biography of Charles |
*T. Ryle Dwyer, ''Short Fellow: A Biography of Charles Haughey'' | ||
*Martin Mansergh, ''Spirit of the Nation: The Collected Speeches of Haughey'' | *Martin Mansergh, ''Spirit of the Nation: The Collected Speeches of Haughey'' | ||
*Joe Joyce & Peter Murtagh ''The Boss: Charles |
*Joe Joyce & Peter Murtagh ''The Boss: Charles Haughey in Government'' | ||
*Tim Ryan, ''Albert Reynolds: The Longford Leader'' | *Tim Ryan, ''Albert Reynolds: The Longford Leader'' | ||
*Albert Reynolds, ''My Autobiography'' | |||
*Bertie Ahern, ''My Autobiography'' | |||
==See also== | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
*] | |||
==Notes== | |||
{{notelist}} | |||
==References== | |||
{{Reflist|30em}} | |||
==External links== | ==External links== | ||
{{Commons category|Taoisigh}} | |||
* | |||
{{Wiktionary|taoiseach}} | |||
{{GovernmentofIreland}} | |||
* | |||
*{{Official website|https://www.gov.ie/en/organisation/department-of-the-taoiseach/}} | |||
{{Prime Ministers of Ireland}} | |||
{{Government of Ireland}} | |||
{{Europe heads of state and government}} | |||
{{European Council}} | |||
{{Types of heads of government}} | |||
{{Prime Minister}} | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | ] | ||
] | |||
] | |||
] | ] | ||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | ] | ||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] | |||
] |
Latest revision as of 12:45, 18 December 2024
Head of government of Ireland
Taoiseach | |
---|---|
Incumbent Simon Harris since 9 April 2024 | |
Style | Irish: A Thaoisigh |
Type | Head of government |
Member of | |
Reports to | Oireachtas |
Residence | None |
Seat | Government Buildings, Merrion Street, Dublin, Ireland |
Nominator | Dáil Éireann |
Appointer | President of Ireland |
Term length | While commanding the confidence of the majority of Dáil Éireann. No term limits are imposed on the office. |
Precursor | President of the Executive Council |
Formation | 29 December 1937 |
First holder | Éamon de Valera |
Deputy | Tánaiste |
Salary | €243,895 annually (2024) (including €113,679 salary as a TD) |
Website | Department of the Taoiseach |
Politics of the Republic of Ireland | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Constitution | ||||||||
PresidencyPresident
Michael D. Higgins
|
||||||||
GovernmentCabinet
|
||||||||
Oireachtas | ||||||||
Courts
|
||||||||
Elections
|
||||||||
Administrative geography | ||||||||
Foreign relations
|
||||||||
The Taoiseach (/ˈtiːʃəx/ ) is the head of government or prime minister of Ireland. The office is appointed by the President of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legislature) and the office-holder must retain the support of a majority in the Dáil to remain in office.
The Irish word taoiseach means "chief" or "leader", and was adopted in the 1937 Constitution of Ireland as the title of the "head of the Government or Prime Minister". It is the official title of the head of government in both English and Irish, and is not used for the prime ministers of other countries, who are instead referred to in Irish by the generic term príomh-aire. The phrase an Taoiseach is sometimes used in an otherwise English-language context, and means the same as "the Taoiseach".
The incumbent Taoiseach is Simon Harris, TD, leader of Fine Gael, who took office on 9 April 2024 following the resignation of Leo Varadkar and under a planned rotation as part of the coalition agreement between Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, and the Green Party. Varadkar held the post from December 2022 and Micheál Martin, TD held the post from June 2020 until December 2022 as part of that agreement. Varadkar tendered his resignation as Taoiseach to the President on 8 April 2024; he was succeeded by Simon Harris the next day after his Dáil election and appointment, becoming the youngest officeholder in state history.
Overview
This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources in this section. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (March 2024) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
Under the Constitution of Ireland, the Taoiseach is nominated by a simple majority of the voting members of Dáil Éireann. They are then formally appointed to office by the President, who is required to appoint whomever the Dáil designates, without the option of declining to make the appointment. For this reason, the Taoiseach may, informally, be said to have been "elected" by Dáil Éireann.
If the Taoiseach loses the support of a majority in Dáil Éireann, they are not automatically removed from office. Instead, they are compelled either to resign or to persuade the President to dissolve the Dáil and call new elections. If the President "in his absolute discretion" refuses to grant a dissolution, this effectively forces the Taoiseach to resign. To date, no President has ever refused a dissolution, although the option to exercise this prerogative arose in 1944 and 1994, and twice in 1982. The Taoiseach may lose the support of Dáil Éireann by the passage of a vote of no confidence, or implicitly, through the failure of a vote of confidence. Alternatively, the Dáil may refuse supply. In the event of the Taoiseach's resignation, they continue to exercise the duties and functions of office until the appointment of a successor.
The Taoiseach nominates the remaining members of the Government, who are then, with the consent of the Dáil, appointed by the President. The Taoiseach may advise the President to dismiss cabinet ministers from office; which the President does not have discretion on. The Taoiseach is responsible for appointing eleven members of the sixty members of the Seanad.
The Department of the Taoiseach is the government department which supports and advises the Taoiseach in carrying out their various duties. The Taoiseach is assisted by one or more Ministers of State at the Department of the Taoiseach, one of whom is the Government Chief Whip.
Salary
Since 2013, the Taoiseach's annual salary is €185,350. It was cut from €214,187 to €200,000 when Enda Kenny took office, before being cut further to €185,350 under the Haddington Road Agreement in 2013.
A proposed increase of €38,000 in 2007 was deferred when Brian Cowen became Taoiseach and in October 2008, the government announced a 10% salary cut for all ministers, including the Taoiseach. However this was a voluntary cut and the salaries remained nominally the same with both ministers and Taoiseach essentially refusing 10% of their salary. This caused controversy in December 2009 when a salary cut of 20% was based on the higher figure before the refused amount was deducted. The Taoiseach is also allowed an additional €118,981 in annual expenses.
Residence
There is no official residence of the Taoiseach. In 2008, it was reported speculatively that the former Steward's Lodge at Farmleigh adjoining the Phoenix Park would become the official residence of the Taoiseach. However, no official statements were made nor any action taken. The house, which forms part of the Farmleigh estate acquired by the State in 1999 for €29.2 million, was renovated at a cost of nearly €600,000 in 2005 by the Office of Public Works. Former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern did not use it as a residence, but his successor Brian Cowen used it occasionally, as did later Taoisigh Enda Kenny and Leo Varadkar, who each paid €50 per night for the use of the house to avoid benefit-in-kind tax being levied on them for use of the house as a grace and favour mansion.
Salute
"Mór Chluana" ("More of Cloyne") is a traditional air collected by Patrick Weston Joyce in 1873. "Amhrán Dóchais" ("Song of Hope") is a poem written by Osborn Bergin in 1913. John A. Costello chose the air as his musical salute. The salute is played by army bands on the arrival of the Taoiseach at state ceremonies. Though the salute is often called "Amhrán Dóchais", Brian Ó Cuív argued "Mór Chluana" is the correct title.
History
Origins and etymology
The words Taoiseach and Tánaiste (deputy prime minister) are both from the Irish language and of ancient origin. Though the Taoiseach is described in the Constitution of Ireland as "the head of the Government or Prime Minister", its literal translation is 'chieftain' or 'leader'. Although Éamon de Valera, who introduced the title in 1937, was a democratic politician who had in the past associated with paramilitaries, some have remarked that the meaning 'leader' in 1937 made the title similar to the titles of fascist dictators of the time, such as Führer (for Adolf Hitler), Duce (for Benito Mussolini) and Caudillo (for Francisco Franco). Tánaiste, in turn, refers to the system of tanistry, the Gaelic system of succession whereby a leader would appoint an heir apparent while still living.
In Scottish Gaelic, tòiseach translates as 'clan chief' and both words originally had similar meanings in the Gaelic languages of Scotland and Ireland. The related Welsh language word tywysog (current meaning: 'prince') has a similar origin and meaning. It is hypothesised that both derive ultimately from the proto-Celtic *towissākos 'chieftain, leader'.
The plural of taoiseach is taoisigh (Northern and Western Irish: [ˈt̪ˠiːʃiː], Southern: [ˈt̪ˠiːʃɪɟ]).
Although the Irish form An Taoiseach is sometimes used in English instead of 'the Taoiseach', the English version of the Constitution states that they "shall be called … the Taoiseach".
Debate on the title
In 1937 when the draft Constitution of Ireland was being debated in the Dáil, Frank MacDermot, an opposition politician, moved an amendment to substitute "Prime Minister" for the proposed "Taoiseach" title in the English text of the Constitution. It was proposed to keep the "Taoiseach" title in the Irish language text. The proponent remarked:
It seems to me to be mere make-believe to try to incorporate a word like "Taoiseach" in the English language. It would be pronounced wrongly by 99 percent of the people. I have already ascertained it is a very difficult word to pronounce correctly. That being so, even for the sake of the dignity of the Irish language, it would be more sensible that when speaking English we should be allowed to refer to the gentleman in question as the Prime Minister... It is just one more example of the sort of things that are being done here as if for the purpose of putting off the people in the North. No useful purpose of any kind can be served by compelling us, when speaking English, to refer to An Taoiseach rather than to the Prime Minister.
The President of the Executive Council, Éamon de Valera, gave the term's meaning as "chieftain" or "Captain". He said he was "not disposed" to support the proposed amendment and felt the word "Taoiseach" did not need to be changed. The proposed amendment was defeated on a vote and "Taoiseach" was included as the title ultimately adopted by plebiscite of the people.
Modern office
The modern position of Taoiseach was established by the 1937 Constitution of Ireland and is the most powerful role in Irish politics. The office replaced the position of President of the Executive Council of the 1922–1937 Irish Free State.
The positions of Taoiseach and President of the Executive Council differed in certain fundamental respects. Under the Constitution of the Irish Free State, the latter was vested with considerably less power and was largely just the chairman of the cabinet, the Executive Council. For example, the President of the Executive Council could not dismiss a fellow minister on his own authority. Instead, the Executive Council had to be disbanded and reformed entirely to remove a member. The President of the Executive Council also did not have the right to advise the Governor-General to dissolve Dáil Éireann on his own authority, that power belonging collectively to the Executive Council.
In contrast, the Taoiseach created in 1937 possesses a much more powerful role. The holder of the position can both advise the President to dismiss ministers and dissolve Parliament on his own authority—advice that the President is almost always required to follow by convention. His role is greatly enhanced because, under the Constitution, he is both de jure and de facto chief executive. In most other parliamentary democracies, the head of state is at least the nominal chief executive, while being bound by convention to act on the advice of the cabinet. In Ireland, however, executive power is explicitly vested in the Government, of which the Taoiseach is the leader.
Since the Taoiseach is the head of government, and may remove ministers at will, many of the powers specified, in law or the constitution, to be exercised by the government as a collective body, are in reality at the will of the Taoiseach. The Government almost always backs the Taoiseach in major decisions, and in many cases often merely formalises that decision at a subsequent meeting after it has already been announced. Nevertheless, the need for collective decision-making on paper acts as a safeguard against an unwise decision made by the Taoiseach.
Generally, where there have been multi-party or coalition governments, the Taoiseach has been the leader of the largest party in the coalition. One exception to this was John A. Costello, who was not the leader of his party, but an agreed choice to head the government, because the other parties refused to accept then Fine Gael leader Richard Mulcahy as Taoiseach. In 2011 Taoiseach Brian Cowen, resigned as party leader and was succeeded by Micheál Martin, but continued as Taoiseach until the formation of a new government following a general election.
List of office holders
Main articles: Irish heads of government since 1919 and Records of Irish heads of government since 1922Before the enactment of the 1937 Constitution, the head of government was the President of the Executive Council. This office was held by W. T. Cosgrave of Cumann na nGaedheal from 1922 to 1932, and by Éamon de Valera of Fianna Fáil from 1932 to 1937. By convention, Taoisigh are numbered to include Cosgrave; therefore, Micheál Martin is considered the 15th Taoiseach, not the 14th.
President of the Executive Council | ||||||||||
No. | Portrait | Name (Birth–Death) Constituency |
Term of office | Party | Exec. Council Composition |
Vice President | Dáil (elected) | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | W. T. Cosgrave (1880–1965) TD for Carlow–Kilkenny until 1927 TD for Cork Borough from 1927 |
6 December 1922 |
9 March 1932 |
Sinn Féin (Pro-Treaty) |
1st | SF (PT) (minority) | Kevin O'Higgins | 3 (1922) | ||
Cumann na nGaedheal | 2nd | CnG (minority) | 4 (1923) | |||||||
3rd | Ernest Blythe | 5 (Jun.1927) | ||||||||
4th | 6 (Sep.1927) | |||||||||
5th | ||||||||||
2 | Éamon de Valera (1882–1975) TD for Clare |
9 March 1932 |
29 December 1937 |
Fianna Fáil | 6th | FF (minority) | Seán T. O'Kelly | 7 (1932) | ||
7th | 8 (1933) | |||||||||
8th | 9 (1937) | |||||||||
Taoiseach | ||||||||||
No. | Portrait | Name (Birth–Death) Constituency |
Term of office | Party | Government Composition |
Tánaiste | Dáil (elected) | |||
(2) | Éamon de Valera (1882–1975) TD for Clare |
29 December 1937 |
18 February 1948 |
Fianna Fáil | 1st | FF (minority) | Seán T. O'Kelly | 9 ( ···· ) | ||
2nd | FF | 10 (1938) | ||||||||
3rd | FF (minority) | 11 (1943) | ||||||||
4th | FF | Seán Lemass | 12 (1944) | |||||||
3 | John A. Costello (1891–1976) TD for Dublin South-East |
18 February 1948 |
13 June 1951 |
Fine Gael | 5th | FG–Lab–CnP–CnT–NL–Ind | William Norton | 13 (1948) | ||
(2) | Éamon de Valera (1882–1975) TD for Clare |
13 June 1951 |
2 June 1954 |
Fianna Fáil | 6th | FF (minority) | Seán Lemass | 14 (1951) | ||
(3) | John A. Costello (1891–1976) TD for Dublin South-East |
2 June 1954 |
20 March 1957 |
Fine Gael | 7th | FG–Lab–CnT | William Norton | 15 (1954) | ||
(2) | Éamon de Valera (1882–1975) TD for Clare |
20 March 1957 |
23 June 1959 |
Fianna Fáil | 8th | FF | Seán Lemass | 16 (1957) | ||
4 | Seán Lemass (1899–1971) TD for Dublin South-Central |
23 June 1959 |
10 November 1966 |
Fianna Fáil | 9th | FF | Seán MacEntee | |||
10th | FF (minority) | 17 (1961) | ||||||||
11th | FF | Frank Aiken | 18 (1965) | |||||||
5 | Jack Lynch (1917–1999) TD for Cork Borough until 1969 TD for Cork City North-West from 1969 |
10 November 1966 |
14 March 1973 |
Fianna Fáil | 12th | FF | ||||
13th | FF | Erskine H. Childers | 19 (1969) | |||||||
6 | Liam Cosgrave (1920–2017) TD for Dún Laoghaire and Rathdown |
14 March 1973 |
5 July 1977 |
Fine Gael | 14th | FG–Lab | Brendan Corish | 20 (1973) | ||
(5) | Jack Lynch (1917–1999) TD for Cork City |
5 July 1977 |
11 December 1979 |
Fianna Fáil | 15th | FF | George Colley | 21 (1977) | ||
7 | Charles Haughey (1925–2006) TD for Dublin Artane |
11 December 1979 |
30 June 1981 |
Fianna Fáil | 16th | FF | ||||
8 | Garret FitzGerald (1926–2011) TD for Dublin South-East |
30 June 1981 |
9 March 1982 |
Fine Gael | 17th | FG–Lab (minority) | Michael O'Leary | 22 (1981) | ||
(7) | Charles Haughey (1925–2006) TD for Dublin North-Central |
9 March 1982 |
14 December 1982 |
Fianna Fáil | 18th | FF (minority) | Ray MacSharry | 23 (Feb.1982) | ||
(8) | Garret FitzGerald (1926–2011) TD for Dublin South-East |
14 December 1982 |
10 March 1987 |
Fine Gael | 19th | FG–Lab FG (minority) from Jan 1987 |
Dick Spring | 24 (Nov.1982) | ||
Peter Barry | ||||||||||
(7) | Charles Haughey (1925–2006) TD for Dublin North-Central |
10 March 1987 |
11 February 1992 |
Fianna Fáil | 20th | FF (minority) | Brian Lenihan | 25 (1987) | ||
21st | FF–PD | 26 (1989) | ||||||||
John Wilson | ||||||||||
9 | Albert Reynolds (1932–2014) TD for Longford–Roscommon |
11 February 1992 |
15 December 1994 |
Fianna Fáil | 22nd | FF–PD FF (minority) from Nov 1992 | ||||
23rd | FF–Lab FF (minority) from Nov 1994 |
Dick Spring | 27 (1992) | |||||||
Bertie Ahern | ||||||||||
10 | John Bruton (1947–2024) TD for Meath |
15 December 1994 |
26 June 1997 |
Fine Gael | 24th | FG–Lab–DL | Dick Spring | |||
11 | Bertie Ahern (b. 1951) TD for Dublin Central |
26 June 1997 |
7 May 2008 |
Fianna Fáil | 25th | FF–PD (minority) | Mary Harney | 28 (1997) | ||
26th | FF–PD | 29 (2002) | ||||||||
Michael McDowell | ||||||||||
27th | FF–Green–PD | Brian Cowen | 30 (2007) | |||||||
12 | Brian Cowen (b. 1960) TD for Laois–Offaly |
7 May 2008 |
9 March 2011 |
Fianna Fáil | 28th | FF–Green–PD FF–Green–Ind from Nov 2009 FF (minority) from Jan 2011 |
Mary Coughlan | |||
13 | Enda Kenny (b. 1951) TD for Mayo |
9 March 2011 |
14 June 2017 |
Fine Gael | 29th | FG–Lab | Eamon Gilmore | 31 (2011) | ||
Joan Burton | ||||||||||
30th | FG–Ind (minority) | Frances Fitzgerald | 32 (2016) | |||||||
14 | Leo Varadkar (b. 1979) TD for Dublin West |
14 June 2017 |
27 June 2020 |
Fine Gael | 31st | FG–Ind (minority) | ||||
Simon Coveney | ||||||||||
15 | Micheál Martin (b. 1960) TD for Cork South-Central |
27 June 2020 |
17 December 2022 |
Fianna Fáil | 32nd | FF–FG–Green | Leo Varadkar | 33 (2020) | ||
(14) | Leo Varadkar (b. 1979) TD for Dublin West |
17 December 2022 |
9 April 2024 |
Fine Gael | 33rd | FG–FF–Green | Micheál Martin | |||
16 | Simon Harris (b. 1986) TD for Wicklow |
9 April 2024 |
Fine Gael | 34th | FG–FF–Green |
Timeline
Further reading
- Farrell, Brian (1971). Chairman or Chief?: The Role of the Taoiseach in Irish Government. Gill & Macmillan.
- O'Malley, Eoin (2012). "The Apex of Government: Cabinet and Taoiseach in operation". In O'Malley, Eoin; MacCarthaigh, Muiris (eds.). Governing Ireland: From cabinet government to delegated governance. Dublin: IPA..
- Gwynn Morgan, David (8 March 2016). "What exactly is a caretaker taoiseach?". The Irish Times.
Biographies
Biographies are also available of de Valera, Lemass, Lynch, Cosgrave, FitzGerald, Haughey, Reynolds and Ahern. FitzGerald wrote an autobiography, while an authorised biography was produced of de Valera.
Some biographies and memoirs of former Taoisigh and presidents of the Executive Council:
- Tim Pat Coogan, Éamon de Valera
- John Horgan, Seán Lemass
- Brian Farrell, Seán Lemass
- T. P. O'Mahony, Jack Lynch: A Biography
- T. Ryle Dwyer, Nice Fellow: A Biography of Jack Lynch
- Stephen Collins, The Cosgrave Legacy
- Garret FitzGerald, All in a Life
- Garret FitzGerald, Just Garret: Tales from the Political Frontline
- Raymond Smith, Garret: The Enigma
- T. Ryle Dwyer, Short Fellow: A Biography of Charles Haughey
- Martin Mansergh, Spirit of the Nation: The Collected Speeches of Haughey
- Joe Joyce & Peter Murtagh The Boss: Charles Haughey in Government
- Tim Ryan, Albert Reynolds: The Longford Leader
- Albert Reynolds, My Autobiography
- Bertie Ahern, My Autobiography
See also
- Politics of the Republic of Ireland
- Records of Irish heads of government since 1922
- Irish heads of government since 1919
Notes
- ^ Article 13.1.1° and Article 28.5.1° of the Constitution of Ireland. The latter provision reads: "The head of the Government, or Prime Minister, shall be called, and is in this Constitution referred to as, the Taoiseach."
- The Taoiseach has no official residence, with each taoiseach residing in their own home. They may use the State Guest House at Steward's Lodge in Phoenix Park for official state functions
- ^ Before the enactment of the 1937 Constitution of Ireland, the head of government was referred to as the President of the Executive Council. This office was first held by W. T. Cosgrave from 1922 to 1932, and then by Éamon de Valera from 1932 to 1937.
- Pronounced /ˈtiːʃəx/ , Irish: [ˈt̪ˠiːʃəx]. The plural Taoisigh is pronounced /ˈtiːʃi/ TEE-shee, Irish: [ˈt̪ˠiːʃiː].
- Pronounced /priːˈvɛərə/, Irish: [ˌpʲɾʲiːw ˈaɾʲə].
- The Dáil refused supply in January 1982, when the then Fine Gael–Labour Party coalition government of Garret FitzGerald lost a vote on the budget.
- John Frederick Vaughan Campbell Cawdor (1742). Cosmo, Innes (ed.). The book of the thanes of Cawdor: a series of papers selected from the charter room at Cawdor. 1236–1742, Volume 1236, Issue 1742. Spalding Club. p. xiii. Retrieved 23 June 2013.
As we cannot name the first Celtic chieftain who consented to change his style of Toshach and his patriarchal sway for the title and stability of King's Thane of Cawdor, so it is impossible to fix the precise time when their ancient property and offices were acquired.
- "Tartan Details – Toshach". Scottish Register of Tartans. Archived from the original on 2 December 2013. Retrieved 27 June 2013.
Toshach is an early Celtic title given to minor territorial chiefs in Scotland (note Eire Prime Minister's official title is this).
- John Thomas Koch (2006), Celtic Culture: a Historical Encyclopedia, ABC-CLIO, p. 1062, ISBN 1851094407,
An early word meaning 'leader' appears on a 5th- or 6th-century inscribed stone as both ogam Irish and British genitive TOVISACI: tywysog now means 'prince' in Welsh, the regular descriptive title used for Prince Charles, for example; while in Ireland, the corresponding Taoiseach is now the correct title, in both Irish and English, for the Prime Minister of the Irish Republic (Éire).
- Notable ministerial dismissals include those of Charles Haughey and Neil Blaney during the Arms Crisis in 1970, Brian Lenihan in 1990, Albert Reynolds, Pádraig Flynn and Máire Geoghegan-Quinn in 1991, and Barry Cowen in 2020.
- Cosgrave was Chairman of the Provisional Government of the Irish Free State from 22 August 1922, during the transitional period before the state became officially independent on 6 December 1922 (See Irish heads of government since 1919).
- De Valera was President of Dáil Éireann in the pre-independence revolutionary Irish Government from 1 April 1919 to 9 January 1922 (See Irish heads of government since 1919).
References
- "Former Taoisigh". www.gov.ie. Government of Ireland. 1 November 2018. Archived from the original on 4 March 2020. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
- ^ "Salaries, Houses of the Oireachtas". Oireachtas. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
- "Taoiseach". Lexico UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 22 March 2020.
- O'Leary, Brendan (April 1991). "An Taoiseach: The Irish prime minister". West European Politics. 14 (2): 133–162. doi:10.1080/01402389108424849. Retrieved 9 August 2024.
- "Cabinet members receive seals of office after reshuffle". RTÉ News. 9 April 2024. Archived from the original on 9 April 2024. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
- Constitution of Ireland, Article 13.1.2°.
- "RTE Election 2007". RTÉ. Archived from the original on 10 May 2007. Retrieved 2 June 2008.
- O'Connell, Hugh (4 July 2013). "The Taoiseach, Ministers and every TD are having their pay cut today". TheJournal.ie. Archived from the original on 30 November 2017. Retrieved 18 December 2013.
- "Taoiseach to receive €38k pay rise". RTÉ News. 25 October 2007. Archived from the original on 27 October 2007. Retrieved 25 October 2007.
- "Sharp exchanges in Dáil over Budget". RTÉ News. 15 October 2008. Archived from the original on 14 February 2009. Retrieved 29 January 2009.
- Kelly, Fiach (10 December 2009). "Opposition says Lenihan's salary cuts do not add up". Irish Independent. Archived from the original on 23 December 2009. Retrieved 29 December 2009.
- Quinlan, Ronald (18 May 2008). "Opulent Phoenix Park lodge is set to become 'Fortress Cowen'". Irish Independent. Archived from the original on 21 May 2008. Retrieved 18 May 2008.
- O'Regan, Michael (29 January 2009). "Cowen questioned on use of Farmleigh". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 18 November 2010. Retrieved 29 January 2009.
- Coyle, Colin (3 September 2023). "Over €87,000 spent upgrading underused Steward's Lodge in Dublin's Phoenix Park". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 18 January 2024. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
- "P. W. Joyce: Ancient Irish Music » 47 – Mór Chluana". Na Píobairí Uilleann. Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 3 February 2014.
- ^ "Joyce, Patrick Weston (1827–1914)". Ainm.ie (in Irish). Cló Iar-Chonnacht. Archived from the original on 20 February 2014. Retrieved 3 February 2014.
- ^ Ó Cuív, Brian (1 April 2010). "Irish language and literature, 1845–1921". In W. E. Vaughan (ed.). Ireland Under the Union, 1870–1921. A New History of Ireland. Vol. VI. Oxford University Press. p. 425. ISBN 9780199583744. Archived from the original on 27 June 2014. Retrieved 3 February 2014.
- "Amhrán Dóchais". Contemporary Music Centre. Archived from the original on 20 October 2017. Retrieved 3 February 2014.
- "Constitution of Ireland". Irish Statute Book.
- ^ "Youth Zone School Pack" (PDF). Department of the Taoiseach. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 December 2007. Retrieved 23 June 2010.
- McCarthy, John-Paul (10 January 2010). "WT became the most ruthless of them all". Irish Independent. Archived from the original on 22 November 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
While Taoiseach itself carried with it some initially unpleasant assonances with Caudillo, Fuhrer and Duce, all but one of the 12 men who wielded the prime ministerial sceptre have managed to keep their megalomaniacal tendencies in check.
- Quigley, Martin (1944). Great Gaels: Ireland at Peace in a World at War. p. 18. Archived from the original on 12 September 2021. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
Eamon de Valera is An Taoiseach or "boss Gael." That title goes considerably beyond the English "prime minister" or the American "president." It is the Gaelic equivalent of the German "Fuehrer," the Italian "Duce" and the Spanish "Caudillo."
Published in New York, 1944 (publisher not identified); Original from University of Minnesota; Digitised 6 May 2016 - Administration – Volume 18. IPA. 1970. p. 153. Archived from the original on 12 September 2021. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
... and let alone the names of the Prime Minister (the Taoiseach, a word that is related to Duce, Fuhrer, and Caudillo) (translated from the original Irish: ... agus fiú amháin ainmeacha an Phríomh-Aire (An Taoiseach, focal go bhfuil gaol aige le Duce, Fuhrer, agus Caudillo)
Original from the University of California; Digitised 6 December 2006 - Robertson, E. William (2004). Scotland Under Her Early Kings: A History of the Kingdom to the Close of the Thirteenth Century Part One. Kessinger Publishing. p. 32. ISBN 9781417946075. Archived from the original on 12 September 2021. Retrieved 28 June 2013.
- "DSL – SND1 TOISEACH". Archived from the original on 2 December 2013. Retrieved 27 June 2013.
- Sims-Williams, Patrick (Summer 1992). "The Additional Letters of the Ogam Alphabet". Cambridge Medieval Celtic Studies. 23: 48. Archived from the original on 12 September 2021. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
- Bolling, George Melville; Bloch, Bernard (27 June 1968). "Language". Linguistic Society of America. Archived from the original on 12 September 2021. Retrieved 3 October 2020 – via Google Books.
- "Statement by An Taoiseach on the death of Cardinal Desmond Connell". Department of the Taoiseach. 9 February 2017. Archived from the original on 6 April 2017. Retrieved 5 March 2017.
The Taoiseach has learnt with regret …
- Frank Mr. MacDermot of the National Centre Party – Bunreacht na hÉireann (Dréacht)—Coiste (Ath-thógaint) – Wednesday, 26 May 1937; Dáil Éireann Debate Vol. 67 No. 9 Archived 22 November 2018 at the Wayback Machine.
- "Bunreacht na hEireann (Dréacht)—Coiste (Ath-thógaint) – Dáil Éireann (8th Dáil) – Vol. 67 No. 9". Oireachtas Debates. 26 May 1937.
- "Former Taoisigh". Government of Ireland. November 2018. Archived from the original on 4 March 2020. Retrieved 19 January 2020.
- "Coughlan new Tánaiste in Cowen Cabinet". The Irish Times. 17 May 2008. Archived from the original on 12 September 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2008.
- "Taoiseach reveals new front bench". RTÉ News. 7 May 2008. Archived from the original on 10 May 2008. Retrieved 17 May 2008.
- "Cowen confirmed as Taoiseach". BreakingNews.ie. 7 May 2008. Archived from the original on 10 May 2008. Retrieved 17 May 2008.
- "Kenny's farewell: 'This has never been about me'". RTÉ News. 13 June 2017. Archived from the original on 13 June 2017. Retrieved 14 June 2017.
- Lord, Miriam (8 June 2017). "Taoiseach-in-waiting meets man waiting to be taoiseach". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 8 June 2017. Retrieved 10 June 2017.
External links
Taoisigh of Ireland | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
European Council | |
---|---|
| |
European Union Portal |
Titles used for heads of government | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Prime ministers | |
---|---|
Prime ministers by country |
|
Defunct title |