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Éamon Ó Cuív

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Éamon Ó Cuív
Ó Cuív in 2019
Teachta Dála
In office
November 1992 – November 2024
ConstituencyGalway West
Deputy leader of Fianna Fáil
In office
4 August 2011 – 29 February 2012
LeaderMicheál Martin
Preceded byBrian Lenihan Jnr
Succeeded byDara Calleary (2018)
Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government
In office
23 January 2011 – 9 March 2011
TaoiseachBrian Cowen
Preceded byJohn Gormley
Succeeded byPhil Hogan (Environment, Community and Local Government)
Minister for Defence
In office
20 January 2011 – 9 March 2011
TaoiseachBrian Cowen
Preceded byTony Killeen
Succeeded byAlan Shatter
Minister for Social Protection
In office
23 March 2010 – 9 March 2011
TaoiseachBrian Cowen
Preceded byMary Hanafin (Social and Family Affairs)
Succeeded byJoan Burton
Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs
In office
6 June 2002 – 23 March 2010
Taoiseach
Preceded bySíle de Valera
Succeeded byPat Carey (Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs)
Minister of State
2001–2002Agriculture, Food and Rural Development
1997–2001Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands
Senator
In office
1 November 1989 – 25 November 1992
ConstituencyCultural and Educational Panel
Personal details
Born (1950-06-23) 23 June 1950 (age 74)
Blackrock, Dublin, Ireland
Political partyFianna Fáil
Spouse
Áine Ní Choincheannain
​
​
(m. 1980)​
Children4
Parent
Relatives
EducationOatlands College
Alma materUniversity College Dublin
Websiteeamonocuiv.ie

Éamon Ó Cuív (Irish pronunciation: [ˈeːmˠən̪ˠ oː ˈkiːvʲ]; born 23 June 1950) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Galway West constituency from 1992 to 2024. He previously served as deputy leader of Fianna Fáil from 2011 to 2012, as Minister for Social Protection from 2010 to 2011, Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs from 2002 to 2010, and as a Minister of State from 1997 to 2002. He also served as Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government and Minister for Defence from January to March 2011, appointed to these positions in addition to his own on the resignation of other members of the government.

He served as a Senator for the Cultural and Educational Panel from 1989 to 1992.[1]

He unsuccessfully contested the leadership of Fianna Fáil after the resignation of Brian Cowen. He lost to Micheál Martin. Martin appointed Ó Cuív as Deputy leader of Fianna Fáil, following Brian Lenihan Jnr's death. However, Ó Cuív ceased to be Deputy leader of Fianna Fáil on 29 February 2012, because of his opposition to his party's stance on the European Fiscal Compact. Ó Cuiv is the grandson of Fianna Fáil founder, Taoiseach and President of Ireland, Éamon de Valera.

Early life

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Ó Cuív is the son of Brian Ó Cuív, professor of Celtic Studies at University College Dublin, and Emer de Valera, who was the last surviving daughter of Fianna Fáil founder, Taoiseach and President of Ireland Éamon de Valera, when she died at the age of 93 in February 2012.[2] He is a nephew of Vivion de Valera, a former TD, and is a first cousin of Síle de Valera, former Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands, and Aindrias Ó Caoimh, former judge of the High Court and of the European Court of Justice.

He was born in Blackrock, Dublin and was educated at Oatlands College, Dublin and University College Dublin.[3] Before entering politics, he was the manager of Gaeltacht Co-operative, a company involved in agricultural services including timber milling, tourism and cultural development.[3]

Surname

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Ó Cuív's family surname was changed from Ó Caoimh by his grandfather Shán Ó Cuív, a Cork journalist. In the early 20th century Shán changed the spelling of his surname to conform to a simplified spelling system of his own invention which he called An Leitriú Shimplí.[4] The letter 'v' is extremely rare in Irish outside modern loanwords, not being one of the 18 letters of the Irish alphabet.[5][6]

Political career

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National politics

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Ó Cuív first stood for election to Dáil Éireann at the 1987 general election in the Galway West constituency, where he was the last-placed of the four Fianna Fáil candidates, only two of whom were elected. He did better in the 1989 general election, substantially increasing his share of the first-preference votes, but was the only one of the three Fianna Fáil candidates not to be elected.

He was then elected to the 19th Seanad as a Senator for the Cultural and Educational Panel. He served there until the 1992 general election, when he finally became a TD for Galway West. His vote had increased significantly and he was elected on the first count, coming a close second for Fianna Fáil behind the Labour Party's Michael D. Higgins. At the 1997 general election, he was again elected in second place on the first count, this time being narrowly behind his Fianna Fáil colleague Frank Fahey. At the 2002 general election, he comfortably topped the poll, with over 20% of the first-preference votes. Ó Cuív again topped the poll in Galway West at the 2007 general election.[7]

In 1994, Ó Cuív raised concern amongst some in Fianna Fáil when he suggested the possibility of a prospective conditional return to the Commonwealth of Nations as a gesture to Unionists in Northern Ireland.[8] However, a straw poll of backbench Fianna Fáil TDs in 1998 showed that this had little support.[9]

Ministerial career

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In 1997, he was appointed Minister of State at the Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands, with responsibility for the Gaeltacht and the islands, serving under his cousin Síle de Valera, who was the senior minister at the department.[10] In 2001, he was reassigned as Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development with responsibility for rural development and the Western Development Commission.[11]

Following the 2002 general election, he was appointed to the cabinet as Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs.[12]

He publicly spoke of voting "No" in the first referendum on the Treaty of Nice. This caused controversy as the government of which he was a member had negotiated the Treaty and called for a "Yes" vote.[13]

As minister, he introduced the Official Languages Act 2003, which created the office of An Coimisinéir Teanga.

Ó Cuív was at the centre of a controversy surrounding the official name of An Daingean / Dingle, a small Gaeltacht town in west County Kerry. The residents of the town held a plebiscite in November 2006, to determine which version of the town name should be used. Ó Cuív originally signalled that he was happy to abide by the locals' decision,[citation needed] but then said that the name could not legally be changed back to Dingle, following advice from the Attorney General of Ireland.

Ó Cuív was re-appointed to the same cabinet position after the 2007 election, and again in 2008 when Brian Cowen succeeded as Taoiseach.[14][15]

In 2007, Ó Cuív again called for Ireland to return to the Commonwealth as a full member state, in light of the restoration of devolution to Northern Ireland and the meeting of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association in Belfast.[16]

In July 2009, Ó Cuív used a government helicopter to open a playground, at the cost of €10,000.[17] On 23 March 2010, in a cabinet reshuffle, he was appointed as Minister for Social Protection. After the resignation of Tony Killeen in January 2011, Ó Cuív was also appointed as Minister for Defence,[18] and he was also appointed Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government after John Gormley's resignation days later.[19] On 22 January 2011, after the resignation of Fianna Fáil leader Brian Cowen, Ó Cuív stated that he wished to be a candidate in the resulting election for the leadership of Fianna Fáil. He confirmed this on the TG4 News.

Opposition

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Ó Cuiv was the Fianna Fáil Spokesperson for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources after Fianna Fáil were ousted from power at the 2011 general election. On 8 August 2011, party leader Micheál Martin, named Ó Cuiv as deputy leader of Fianna Fáil, replacing Brian Lenihan.

On 29 February 2012, Ó Cuív resigned as Fianna Fáil's deputy leader and Communications Spokesperson. He resigned from these positions due to dissatisfaction with his party's position on the Fiscal Compact Referendum.[20][21] Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin stated that Ó Cuív would face expulsion from the parliamentary party if he did not vote with the party on the Fiscal Compact in the Dáil.[22] Coming just a week before their party conference, Ó Cuív's resignation caused a split down the middle of the Fianna Fáil party.[23]

On 12 July 2012, Ó Cuív was reappointed to the Fianna Fáil front bench as Spokesperson for Agriculture and Food, and on Community Affairs.[24] The post of deputy leader was not filled in the reshuffle. On 8 November 2018, Ó Cuív was sacked from the Fianna Fáil front bench for unveiling a candidate in a Northern Ireland election without the party's permission.[25]

In 2018, he was one of 25 TDs to vote against the Thirty-sixth Amendment of the Constitution Bill, which proposed to replace the protection of the life of the unborn inserted by the Eighth Amendment with a provision allowing the termination of pregnancy to be regulated by law.[26] This amendment was approved in a referendum in May 2018 by 66.4%, including 65.9% in his constituency. Ó Cuív was one of 15 TDs to vote against the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Bill, which became law at the end of 2018.[27]

Following the 2020 general election, he said that he was "completely against" Fianna Fáil forming a coalition government with Fine Gael and the Green Party.[28] He later went on to publicly doubt the programme for government.[29]

On 24 July 2024, Ó Cuív announced that he would not contest the next general election.[30]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Éamon Ó Cuív". Oireachtas Members Database. Archived from the original on 4 July 2019. Retrieved 9 October 2009.
  2. ^ "Emer Í Chuív passes away aged 93". RTÉ News. 9 February 2012. Archived from the original on 24 September 2021. Retrieved 9 February 2012.
  3. ^ a b "Profile". Éamon Ó Cuív's website. Archived from the original on 9 December 2010. Retrieved 22 January 2011.
  4. ^ "O Cuiv – the spelling of my name". Archived from the original on 17 November 2007. Retrieved 19 July 2009.
  5. ^ "Dáil Éireann – 19 May 2005 – Priority Questions – Irish Language". Houses of the Oireachtas. 19 May 2005. Archived from the original on 13 January 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  6. ^ "The spelling of Irish". Universität Duisburg-Essen. Archived from the original on 27 November 2009. Retrieved 19 July 2007.
  7. ^ "Éamon Ó Cuív". ElectionsIreland.org. Archived from the original on 3 February 2009. Retrieved 9 October 2009.
  8. ^ Arthur Griffith Archived 30 March 2020 at the Wayback Machine, Brian Maye, Griffith College Publications, 1997, page 374
  9. ^ FF TDs still wary of Commonwealth Archived 7 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine, Irish Independent, 30 November 1998
  10. ^ "Appointment of Members of Government and Ministers of State – Dáil Éireann (28th Dáil) – Vol. 480 No. 2". Houses of the Oireachtas. 9 July 1997. Archived from the original on 28 October 2020. Retrieved 12 January 2020.
  11. ^ "Resignation of Minister of State: Announcement by Taoiseach – Dáil Éireann (27th Dáil) – Vol. 530 No. 6". Houses of the Oireachtas. 20 February 2002. Archived from the original on 28 October 2020. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
  12. ^ "Appointment of Members of Government and Ministers of State – Dáil Éireann (29th Dáil) – Vol. 553 No. 2". Houses of the Oireachtas. 18 June 2002. Archived from the original on 28 October 2020. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  13. ^ "Ó Cuív quits as FF deputy leader over EU referendum". The Irish Times. Irish Times Trust. 29 February 2012. Archived from the original on 2 March 2012. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
  14. ^ "Appointment of Members of Government and Ministers of State – Dáil Éireann (30th Dáil) – Vol. 637 No. 2". Houses of the Oireachtas. 26 June 2007. Archived from the original on 18 December 2020. Retrieved 21 March 2020.
  15. ^ "Appointment of Taoiseach and Nomination of Members of Government – Dáil Éireann (30th Dáil) – Vol. 653 No. 6". Houses of the Oireachtas. 8 May 2008. Archived from the original on 8 January 2021. Retrieved 21 March 2019.
  16. ^ "More calls for Govt to rejoin Commonwealth". Ireland online news. 15 May 2007. Archived from the original on 12 January 2008.
  17. ^ O'Connor, Aidan (18 July 2009). "O Cuiv's chopper trip costs taxpayer €10,000". Irish Independent. Archived from the original on 22 July 2009. Retrieved 19 July 2009.
  18. ^ "Election date set for 11 March". RTÉ News. 20 January 2011. Archived from the original on 21 January 2011. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
  19. ^ "Ó Cuív and Carey get vacant ministerial posts". Irish Examiner. 23 January 2011. Archived from the original on 19 September 2012. Retrieved 23 January 2011.
  20. ^ "O Cuiv steps down as FF Deputy leader over EU treaty". Irish Independent. 29 February 2012. Archived from the original on 2 March 2012. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
  21. ^ "O Cuiv quits as Fianna Fail deputy leader". BBC News. 29 February 2012. Archived from the original on 1 March 2012. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
  22. ^ "Éamon Ó Cuív resigns as FF Deputy Leader". RTÉ News. 29 February 2012. Archived from the original on 1 March 2012. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
  23. ^ "Donegal Fianna Fáil split as Ó Cuív resigns". Donegal Daily. 29 February 2012. Archived from the original on 20 March 2014. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
  24. ^ "Fianna Fáil reshuffles frontbench". The Irish Times. 12 July 2012. Archived from the original on 23 September 2021. Retrieved 13 July 2012.
  25. ^ "Éamon O Cuív sacked from Fianna Fáil front bench over Northern Ireland 'election unveiling'". The Irish Independent. 8 November 2018. Archived from the original on 8 November 2018. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
  26. ^ "Dáil Éireann debate - Wednesday, 21 Mar 2018 - Thirty-sixth Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2018: Fifth Stage". Houses of the Oireachtas. 21 March 2018. Archived from the original on 13 January 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  27. ^ "Dáil Éireann debate - Wednesday, 5 Dec 2018 - Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Bill 2018: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage". Houses of the Oireachtas. 5 December 2018. Archived from the original on 12 January 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  28. ^ Ryan, Órla (14 February 2020). "Éamon Ó Cuív says he's 'completely against' Fianna Fáil going into coalition with Fine Gael and Greens". TheJournal.ie. Archived from the original on 4 June 2020. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
  29. ^ "Fianna Fáil's Éamon Ó Cuív doubts programme for government will get party support". Breaking News. 18 May 2020. Archived from the original on 4 June 2020. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
  30. ^ "Éamon Ó Cuív will not stand in next general election". RTÉ.ie. 24 July 2024.
[edit]
Political offices
Preceded byas Minister of State at the Department of Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht Minister of State at the Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands
1997–2001 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Development
2001–2002 		Succeeded byas Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture and Food
Preceded by Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs
2002–2010 		Succeeded byas Minister for Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs
Preceded byas Minister for Social and Family Affairs Minister for Social Protection
2010–2011 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister for Defence
2011 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government
2011 		Succeeded byas Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government
Party political offices
Preceded by Deputy leader of Fianna Fáil
2011–2012 		Succeeded by
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