Government of the 24th Dáil

The Government of the 24th Dáil or the 19th Government of Ireland (14 December 1982 – 10 March 1987) was the government of Ireland formed after the November 1982 general election. It was a coalition government of Fine Gael and the Labour Party led by Garret FitzGerald as Taoiseach.

Government of the 24th Dáil
19th Government of Ireland
Date formed	14 December 1982
Date dissolved	10 March 1987
People and organisations
President	Patrick Hillery
Taoiseach	Garret FitzGerald
Tánaiste	Dick Spring (1982–87) Peter Barry (1987)
Total no. of members	15
Member parties	Fine Gael Labour Party (Dec. 1982 – Jan. 1987)
Status in legislature	Majority Coalition
Opposition party	Fianna Fáil
Opposition leader	Charles Haughey
History
Election(s)	November 1982 general election
Legislature term(s)	24th Dáil 17th Seanad
Predecessor	18th Government
Successor	20th Government

The 19th Government lasted for 1,547 days.

19th Government of Ireland

Nomination of Taoiseach

The members of the 24th Dáil first met on 14 December 1982. In the debate on the nomination of Taoiseach, the Fianna Fáil leader and outgoing Taoiseach Charles Haughey, and Fine Gael leader Garret FitzGerald were both proposed.[1] The nomination of Haughey was defeated with 77 votes in favour to 88 against, while the nomination of FitzGerald was carried with 85 in favour and 79 against. FitzGerald was then appointed as Taoiseach by president Patrick Hillery.[2]

14 December 1982 Nomination of Garret FitzGerald (FG) for Taoiseach[3] Motion proposed by Kieran Crotty and seconded by Nora Owen Absolute majority: 84/166
Vote	Parties	Votes
Y Yes	Fine Gael (69), Labour Party (16)	85 / 166
No	Fianna Fáil (75), Workers' Party (2), Independent Fianna Fáil (1), Independent (1)	79 / 166
Not voting	Ceann Comhairle (1), Independent (1)	2 / 166

Members of the Government

After his appointment as Taoiseach by the president, Garret FitzGerald proposed the members of the government and they were approved by the Dáil.[2] They were appointed by the president on the same day.[4]

Office	Name	Term	Party
Taoiseach	Garret FitzGerald[lower-alpha 1]	1982–87		Fine Gael
Tánaiste	Dick Spring	1982–87		Labour Party
Minister for the Environment		1982–83
Minister for Agriculture	Austin Deasy	1982–87		Fine Gael
Minister for Defence	Patrick Cooney	1982–86		Fine Gael
Minister for Education	Gemma Hussey	1982–86		Fine Gael
Minister for Finance	Alan Dukes	1982–86		Fine Gael
Minister for Fisheries and Forestry	Paddy O'Toole	1982–86		Fine Gael
Minister for the Gaeltacht		1982–87
Minister for Foreign Affairs	Peter Barry	1982–87		Fine Gael
Minister for Health	Barry Desmond	1982–87		Labour Party
Minister for Social Welfare		1982–86
Minister for Industry and Energy	John Bruton	1982–83		Fine Gael
Minister for Justice	Michael Noonan	1982–86		Fine Gael
Minister for Labour	Liam Kavanagh	1982–83		Labour Party
Minister for Posts and Telegraphs	Jim Mitchell	1982–84		Fine Gael
Minister for Transport
Minister for the Public Service	John Boland	1982–86		Fine Gael
Minister for Trade, Commerce and Tourism	Frank Cluskey	1982–83		Labour Party
Changes 13 December 1983 Reshuffle on the resignation of Frank Cluskey.[5][6][7]
Office	Name	Term	Party
Minister for Energy[lower-alpha 2]	Dick Spring	1983–87		Labour Party
Minister for the Environment	Liam Kavanagh	1983–86		Labour Party
Minister for Industry, Trade, Commerce and Tourism[lower-alpha 3]	John Bruton	1983–86		Fine Gael
Minister for Labour	Ruairi Quinn	1983–87		Labour Party
Changes 2 January 1984 On the abolition of the Department of Posts and Telegraphs and the Department of Transport and the establishment of the Department of Communications.[11]
Office	Name	Term	Party
Minister for Communications[lower-alpha 4]	Jim Mitchell	1984–87		Fine Gael
Changes 14 February 1986 Reshuffle.[13]
Office	Name	Term	Party
Minister for Education	Patrick Cooney	1986–87		Fine Gael
Minister for the Environment	John Boland	1986–87		Fine Gael
Minister for Defence	Paddy O'Toole	1986–87		Fine Gael
Minister for Finance	John Bruton	1986–87		Fine Gael
Minister for Industry and Commerce[lower-alpha 5]	Michael Noonan	1986–87		Fine Gael
Minister for Justice	Alan Dukes	1986–87		Fine Gael
Minister for the Public Service	Ruairi Quinn	1986–87		Labour Party
Minister for Social Welfare	Gemma Hussey	1986–87		Fine Gael
Minister for Tourism, Fisheries and Forestry[lower-alpha 6]	Liam Kavanagh	1986–87		Labour Party
Changes 20 January 1987 On 20 January 1987 the Labour Party ministers Dick Spring, Barry Desmond, Liam Kavanagh and Ruairi Quinn resigned from the government. No new members joined the Cabinet and their portfolios were redistributed as follows.
Office	Name	Term	Party
Tánaiste	Peter Barry	1987		Fine Gael
Minister for Energy	Michael Noonan	1987		Fine Gael
Minister for Health	John Boland	1987		Fine Gael
Minister for Labour	Gemma Hussey	1987		Fine Gael
Minister for the Public Service	John Bruton	1987		Fine Gael
Minister for Tourism, Fisheries and Forestry	Paddy O'Toole	1987		Fine Gael

Notes

1. Garret FitzGerald was acting Minister for Trade, Commerce and Tourism from 8 to 13 December 1983 following the resignation of Frank Cluskey.[5]
2. On 17 December 1983 the Department of Industry and Energy was renamed as the Department of Energy.[8][9]
3. On 17 December 1983 the Department of Trade, Commerce and Tourism was renamed as the Department of Industry, Trade, Commerce and Tourism.[10][9]
4. On 2 January 1984 the Department of Posts and Telegraphs and the Department of Transport were abolished and replaced by the Department of Communications.[12]
5. On 19 February 1986 the Department of Industry, Trade, Commerce and Tourism was renamed as the Department of Industry and Commerce.[14]
6. On 19 February 1986 the Department of Fisheries and Forestry was renamed as the Department of Tourism, Fisheries and Forestry.[15]

Attorney General

On 14 December 1982, Peter Sutherland SC was appointed by the president as Attorney General on the nomination of the Taoiseach.[2][4] He resigned as Attorney General on 12 December 1984 on his nomination as European Commissioner. On 13 December 1984, John Rogers SC was appointed by the president as Attorney General on the nomination of the Taoiseach.[16]

Ministers of State

On 14 December 1982, the Government on the nomination of the Taoiseach appointed Seán Barrett to the post of Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach with special responsibility as Government Chief Whip.[2] On 16 December 1982, the Government appointed the other Ministers of State on the nomination of the Taoiseach.[17]

Name	Office	Department(s)	Party
Seán Barrett	Government Chief Whip	Department of the Taoiseach		Fine Gael
	Defence	Department of Defence
Nuala Fennell	Women's Affairs and Family Law Refom	Department of the Taoiseach		Fine Gael
Ted Nealon	Arts and Culture	Department of the Taoiseach		Fine Gael
Ruairi Quinn	Urban Affairs and Housing	Department of the Environment		Labour Party
Jim O'Keeffe	Overseas Development	Department of Foreign Affairs		Fine Gael
Patrick Hegarty	Production	Department of Agriculture		Fine Gael
Paul Connaughton Snr	Land Structure and Development	Department of Agriculture		Fine Gael
Joseph Bermingham	Office of Public Works	Department of Finance		Labour Party
Edward Collins	Energy Affairs	Department of Industry and Energy		Fine Gael
John Donnellan	Posts and Telegraphs Service	Department of Posts and Telegraphs Department of Transport		Fine Gael
Michael Moynihan	Tourism	Department of Trade, Commerce and Tourism		Labour Party
George Birmingham	Youth Affairs	Department of Labour		Fine Gael
Fergus O'Brien	Public Health and Social Welfare Information	Department of Health Department of Social Welfare		Fine Gael
Donal Creed	School Buildings and Sport	Department of Education		Fine Gael
Michael D'Arcy	Fisheries and Forestry	Department of Fisheries and Forestry Department of the Gaeltacht		Fine Gael
Changes 7 January 1983 Nuala Fennell was appointed Minister of State for Family Law Reform at the Department of Justice in addition to her existing post.[18]
Changes 18 February 1983 Ted Nealon was appointed Minister of State for Broadcasting at the Department of Posts and Telegraphs in addition to his existing post.[19]
Changes 15 December 1983 Changes in ministerial roles.[9]
Name	Office	Department(s)	Party
Edward Collins		Department of Trade, Commerce and Tourism		Fine Gael
John Donnellan		Department of Health Department of Social Welfare		Fine Gael
George Birmingham		Department of Education		Fine Gael
Fergus O'Brien		Department of the Environment		Fine Gael
Séamus Pattison		Department of Social Welfare		Labour Party
Changes 2 January 1984 Ted Nealon was appointed Minister of State for Radio and Television at the Department of Communications.[11]
Changes 13 February 1986 Ministerial reshuffle.[13]
Name	Office	Department(s)	Party
Fergus O'Brien	Government Chief Whip	Department of the Taoiseach		Fine Gael
	Defence	Department of Defence
		Department of the Environment
Seán Barrett		Department of the Taoiseach Department of Education		Fine Gael
Jim O'Keeffe		Department of the Public Service		Fine Gael
Patrick Hegarty		Department of Agriculture Department of Industry and Commerce		Fine Gael
George Birmingham	European Affairs and Development Co-operation	Department of Foreign Affairs		Fine Gael
Enda Kenny	Youth Affairs	Department of Labour Department of Education		Fine Gael
Toddy O'Sullivan	Grants Administration	Department of the Environment		Labour Party
Avril Doyle	Office of Public Works and Environmental Protection	Department of Finance Department of the Environment		Fine Gael
Changes 18 February 1986 Donal Creed and Michael D'Arcy are removed from office following their refusal to resign in order to facilitate a reshuffle.[20]
Changes 23 September 1986 Changes following the dismissal of Edward Collins.[21]
Name	Office	Department(s)	Party
Richard Bruton	Energy Affairs	Department of Energy Department of Industry and Commerce		Fine Gael
Changes 20 January 1987 On 20 January 1987 the Labour Party ministers of State resigned their positions.

Events during the government

The government resorted to high marginal tax rates to curb the national debt, which had increased when spending commitments accrued under the 1977–81 government's expansion of the public sector became unsustainable after the 1979 energy crisis. High taxes and high unemployment brought a return to high net emigration, a long-established Irish flow which had temporarily reversed in the 1970s. An economic policy document, "Building on reality", was published in 1984.[22]

The "republican crusade" flagged by Garret Fitzgerald in 1981 saw some changes in policy on Northern Ireland and social issues. The government's New Ireland Forum was a prelude to the Anglo-Irish Agreement signed in 1985. A referendum to ease the ban on divorce was defeated in 1986, while a bill to ease restrictions on contraception, was passed in 1985. The failure of Desmond O'Malley to vote against this legislation led to his expulsion from Fianna Fáil.[23] O'Malley later established the Progressive Democrats in December 1985.

See also

• Dáil Éireann
• Constitution of Ireland
• Politics of the Republic of Ireland

References

1. "Nomination of Taoiseach – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Tuesday, 14 December 1982". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
2. "Appointment of Taoiseach and Nomination of Members of Government – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Tuesday, 14 December 1982". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
3. "Nomination of Taoiseach – Votes – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Tuesday, 14 December 1982". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
4. "Appointment of Ministers and Minister of State – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Wednesday, 15 December 1982". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
5. "Resignation of Member of Government: Announcement by Taoiseach – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Tuesday, 13 December 1983". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
6. "Nomination of Member of Government: Motion – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Tuesday, 13 December 1983". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
7. "Appointment and Reassignment of Ministers: Announcement by Taoiseach – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Tuesday, 13 December 1983". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
8. "Industry and Energy (Alteration of Name of Department and Title of Minister) Order 1983". Irish Statute Book. 15 December 1983. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
9. "Ministerial Appointments and Titles – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Friday, 16 December 1983". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
10. "Trade, Commerce and Tourism (Alteration of Name of Department and Title of Minister) Order 1983". Irish Statute Book. 15 December 1983. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
11. "Assignment of Department: Announcement by Taoiseach – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Wednesday, 8 January 1984". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
12. "Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Act 1983". Irish Statute Book. 27 December 1983. Retrieved 17 August 2019.; "Postal and Telecommunications Services Act 1983 (An Post) (Vesting Day) Order 1983". Irish Statute Book. 21 December 1983. Retrieved 17 August 2019.
13. "Ministerial Assignments and Titles: Announcement by Taoiseach – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Thursday, 13 February 1986". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
14. "Industry, Trade, Commerce and Tourism (Alteration of Name of Department and Title of Minister) Order 1986". Irish Statute Book. 18 February 1986. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
15. "Fisheries and Forestry (Alteration of Name of Department and Title of Minister) Order 1986". Irish Statute Book. 18 February 1986. Retrieved 25 January 2020.
16. "Appointment of Attorney General – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Thursday, 13 December 1984". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
17. "Appointment of Ministers of State – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Thursday, 16 December 1982". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
18. "Appointment of Minister of State and Allocation of Responsibilities: Announcement by Taoiseach – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Wednesday, 26 January 1983". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
19. "Appointment of Minister of State: Announcement by Taoiseach – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Tuesday, 22 February 1983". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
20. "Announcement by Taoiseach – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Tuesday, 18 February 1986". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
21. "Removal and Appointment of Ministers of State: Announcement by the Taoiseach – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Wednesday, 22 October 1986". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
22. Department of the Taoiseach (2 October 1984). Building on Reality 1984-87 (National Economic Plan) (PDF). Government publications. Pl.2648 (8679). Ireland: Oireachtas. Retrieved 28 November 2013.
23. "Health (Family Planning) (Amendment) Bill, 1985: Second Stage (Resumed) – Dáil Éireann (24th Dáil) – Wednesday, 20 February 1985". Houses of the Oireachtas. Retrieved 24 January 2020.