Government of the 4th Dáil

The Government of the 4th Dáil or the 2nd Executive Council (19 September 1923 – 23 June 1927) was the Executive Council of the Irish Free State formed after the general election held on 27 August 1923. It was a minority Cumann na nGaedheal government led by W. T. Cosgrave as President of the Executive Council.

Government of the 4th Dáil
2nd Executive Council of the Irish Free State
Date formed19 September 1923
Date dissolved23 June 1927
People and organisations
KingGeorge V
Governor-GeneralTim Healy
President of the Executive CouncilW. T. Cosgrave
Vice-President of the Executive CouncilKevin O'Higgins
Total no. of members11 (inc. 4 non-members of the Executive Council)
Member partyCumann na nGaedheal
Status in legislatureMinority Government
Opposition partyLabour Party
Opposition leaderThomas Johnson
History
Election(s)1923 general election
Legislature term(s)4th Dáil
1st Seanad (1922–25)
1st Seanad (1925–28)
Predecessor1st Executive Council
Successor3rd Executive Council

The 2nd Executive Council lasted 1,373 days.

2nd Executive Council of the Irish Free State

The members of the 4th Dáil first met on 19 September 1923. The nomination of W. T. Cosgrave as President of the Executive Council was proposed by Richard Mulcahy and seconded by William Magennis. It was approved by the Dáil and Cosgrave was re-appointed by the governor-general.[1]

Members of the Executive Council

The members of the Executive Council were proposed by the president and approved by the Dáil on 20 September 1923.[2]

Office Name
President of the Executive Council W. T. Cosgrave
Vice-President of the Executive Council Kevin O'Higgins
Minister for Home Affairs
Minister for Defence Richard Mulcahy
Minister for Education Eoin MacNeill
Minister for External Affairs Desmond FitzGerald
Minister for Finance Ernest Blythe
Minister for Industry and Commerce Joseph McGrath

Ministers not members of the Executive Council

Extern Ministers were appointed by the Dáil on 10 October.[3]

Office Name
Minister for Agriculture Patrick Hogan
Minister for Fisheries[4] Fionán Lynch
Minister for Local Government[5] Séamus Burke
Postmaster-General[6] James J. Walsh

Changes

20 March 1924

Richard Mulcahy was forced to resign after criticism by the Executive Council
of his handling of the Army Mutiny.[7]

Office Name
Minister for Defence W. T. Cosgrave (acting)

4 April 1924

Joseph McGrath resigned from office on 7 March 1924 because of dissatisfaction
with government attitude to IRAO army officers.[8]

Office Name
Minister for Industry and Commerce Patrick McGilligan

21 November 1924

Permanent Minister for Defence.[9]

Office Name
Minister for Defence Peter Hughes

28 January 1926

Eoin MacNeill resigned in November 1925 following the report of the Irish Boundary Commission
was published in a newspaper. MacNeill had represented the Free State on the commission.[10][11]

Office Name
Minister for Education John M. O'Sullivan

Parliamentary Secretaries

The Parliamentary Secretaries were appointed by the Executive Council.[12]

Name Office Term
Daniel McCarthy Government Chief Whip 1923–1924
James Dolan Government Chief Whip 1924–1927
John M. O'Sullivan Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Finance 1924–1926
Eamonn Duggan Parliamentary Secretary to the Executive Council 1924–1926
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Finance 1926–1927
George Nicolls Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Defence 1925–1927

Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924

The Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924 came into effect on 2 June 1924.[13] On this date, the following ministerial titles were renamed:[14]

Old title New title
Minister for Home Affairs Minister for Justice
Minister for Local Government Minister for Local Government and Public Health
Minister for Agriculture Minister for Lands and Agriculture
Postmaster-General Minister for Posts and Telegraphs

Amendments to the Constitution of the Irish Free State

The following amendments to the Constitution of the Irish Free State were proposed by the Executive Council and passed by the Oireachtas:

  • Amendment No. 1 (11 July 1925): Provided that the first Senators would vacate office in December 1925, made changes relating to the terms of office of senators, and the date on which Seanad elections were to be held.
  • Amendment No. 3 (4 March 1927): Removed the requirement that the day of any general election would be declared a public holiday.
  • Amendment No. 4 (4 March 1927): Extended the maximum term of the Dáil from four to six years.
  • Amendment No. 2 (19 March 1927): Introduced a system of automatic re-election of the Ceann Comhairle in a general election.
  • Amendment No. 5 (5 May 1927): Increased the maximum membership of the Executive Council from seven to twelve members.
gollark: I think my biggest book is one of the Mistborn ones, they're 700 pages or something.
gollark: I have a bunch of *e*books collecting dust, which is much better since they can't actually collect dust.
gollark: Sounds good.
gollark: So taxes, price controls, that sort of thing.
gollark: Government intervention, I guess?

See also

Footnotes
  1. "NOMINATION OF PRESIDENT – Dáil Éireann (4th Dáil) – Wednesday, 19 September 1923". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  2. "NOMINATION OF THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL – Dáil Éireann (4th Dáil) – Thursday, 20 September 1923". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  3. "MINISTERS NOT MEMBERS OF THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL – Dáil Éireann (4th Dáil) – Wednesday, 10 October 1923". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  4. "MINISTER FOR FISHERIES – Dáil Éireann (4th Dáil) – Wednesday, 10 October 1923". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  5. "MINISTER FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENT – Dáil Éireann (4th Dáil) – Wednesday, 10 October 1923". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  6. "POSTMASTER-GENERAL – Dáil Éireann (4th Dáil) – Wednesday, 10 October 1923". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  7. "THE MILITARY SITUATION – Dáil Éireann (4th Dáil) – Thursday, 20 March 1924". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  8. "MINISTER FOR INDUSTRY AND COMMERCE – Dáil Éireann (4th Dáil) – Thursday, 3 April 1924". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  9. "NOMINATION OF MINISTER FOR DEFENCE – Dáil Éireann (4th Dáil) – Friday, 21 November 1924". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  10. "MINISTER FOR EDUCATION – Dáil Éireann (4th Dáil) – Wednesday, 27 January 1926". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  11. "APPOINTMENT OF MINISTER FOR EDUCATION – Dáil Éireann (4th Dáil) – Wednesday, 3 February 1926". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  12. "History of Government – Fourth Dáil – Parliamentary Secretaries". Department of the Taoiseach. Archived from the original on 11 November 2012. Retrieved 20 November 2012.
  13. "Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924 (Commencement) Order 1924". Irish Statute Book. 30 May 1924. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  14. "Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924, Schedule 10". Irish Statute Book. 21 April 1924. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
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