85-701: Proinsias De Rossa (born 15 May 1940) is an Irish former Labour Party politician who served as Minister for Social Welfare from 1994 to 1997, leader of Democratic Left from 1992 to 1999 and leader of the Workers' Party from 1988 to 1992. He served as Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for the Dublin constituency from 1989 to 1992 and 1999 to 2012. He was a Teachta Dála (TD) for Dublin North-West from 1982 to 2002. Born as Francis Ross in 1940 in Dublin , he
170-608: A Government that is actually hurting people", and she resigned from the party in July 2013. In June 2013, Patrick Nulty and Colm Keaveney resigned from the Labour Party. Willie Penrose returned to the parliamentary Labour Party in October 2013. On 26 May 2014, Gilmore resigned as party leader after Labour's poor performance in the European and local elections . On 4 July 2014, Joan Burton won
255-557: A coalition with Fianna Fáil , taking office in January 1993 as the 23rd government of Ireland . Fianna Fáil leader Albert Reynolds remained as Taoiseach , and Labour Party leader Dick Spring became Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs . After less than two years the government fell in a controversy over the appointment of Attorney General , Harry Whelehan , as president of the High Court . The parliamentary arithmetic had changed as
340-493: A coalition with the Progressive Democrats . The 1980s saw fierce disagreements between the wings of the party. The more radical elements, Labour Left, led by such figures as Emmet Stagg , Sam Nolan , Frank Buckley and Helena Sheehan , and Militant Tendency, led by Joe Higgins , opposed the idea of Labour entering into coalition government with either of the major centre-right parties (Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael). At
425-599: A democratic socialist party. Its constitution refers to the party as a "movement of democratic socialists, social democrats, environmentalists, progressives, feminists (and) trade unionists". It has been described as a "big tent" party by the Irish Independent . The stance of the Labour Party has changed dramatically over time. In 1964, American historian Emmet Larkin described the Irish Labour Party as "the most opportunistically conservative Labour Party anywhere in
510-505: A full-scale devotional revival of Catholicism was reflected in the outlook and policies of the party. The ' Starry Plough ,' the traditional symbol of Labour, reflects a Catholic tradition and biblical reference to Isaiah 2:3-4, which is integral to its design. Like Fianna Fáil, Labour embraced corporatist policies, again influenced by the Catholic Church. This was deemed to be important for both in terms of winning electoral support from
595-494: A general election. Between 1994 and 1997 Fine Gael , the Labour Party, and Democratic Left governed in the 24th government of Ireland . Dick Spring became Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs again. Labour greatly influenced the policy document for the 1993-1994 coalition, with one observer noting that Fianna Fáil's policy document for the coalition "contained lots of our policies, While swaths of texts were lifted from our manifesto". (Bowcott 1993) The Labour Party presented
680-584: A loss of 30 seats on its showing in 2011. On 20 May 2016, Brendan Howlin was elected unopposed as leader ; some controversy arose from the fact that there was no contest for the leadership because none of his parliamentary colleagues were prepared to second the nomination of Alan Kelly . Howlin stated that as leader he was prepared to bring Labour back into government, citing the lack of influence on policy from opposition. He denied any suggestions that Labour could lose any further support from their 2016 performance, stating "We're not some outfit that comes out of
765-641: A member of the European Convention which produced the July 2003 draft European Constitution . De Rossa was chair of the European Parliament's delegation for relations with the Palestinian Legislative Council . He was a member of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs and the Conference of Delegation Chairs, and a substitute member of the Committee on Development and the delegation to
850-626: A number of strikes during the first year and a loss in support for the party. In the 1923 general election the Labour Party only won 14 seats. From 1922 until Fianna Fáil TDs took their seats in 1927, the Labour Party was the major opposition party in the Dáil . Labour attacked the lack of social reform by the Cumann na nGaedheal government. From 1927, a large number of the Labour Party's voters were pre-empted by Fianna Fáil, with its almost identical policies. Labour lacked Fianna Fáil's 'republican' image, which
935-471: A partner in coalition governments on eight occasions since its formation: seven times in coalition either with Fine Gael alone or with Fine Gael and other smaller parties, and once with Fianna Fáil . This gives Labour a cumulative total of twenty-five years served as part of a government, the third-longest total of any party in the Republic of Ireland after Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. Led by Ivana Bacik , it
SECTION 10
#17330926944711020-508: A result of Fianna Fáil's loss of two seats in by-elections in June , where the Labour Party itself had performed disastrously. On the pretext that the Labour Party voters were not happy with involvement with Fianna Fáil, Dick Spring withdrew his support for Reynolds as Taoiseach. The Labour Party negotiated a new coalition, the first time in Irish political history that one coalition replaced another without
1105-590: A split in the Northern Ireland Labour Party (NILP) with Jack Macgougan leading anti- Partition members out and affiliating branches to the Dublin party, joined by other left-wing and nationalist representatives and branded locally as "Irish Labour". At Westminster, Jack Beattie held Belfast West from 1951 to 1955 ; the British Labour party refused Beattie its whip . At Stormont, Belfast Dock
1190-531: Is a mere transition phase on the road to securing the support of the majority of our people. At the next general election (we) must face the electorate with a clear-cut alternative to the conservatism of the past and present; and emerge . . . . as the Party which will shape the seventies. What I offer now is the outline of a new society, a New Republic. Brendan Corish became the new Labour leader in 1960. As leader, he advocated for more socialist policies to be adopted by
1275-600: Is the joint fifth-largest party in Dáil Éireann , with six seats, and is the joint third-largest party in Seanad Éireann , with four seats, making Labour the fifth-largest party in the Oireachtas overall as of 2021. It currently has 1 MEP. The Labour Party is a member of the Progressive Alliance , Socialist International , and Party of European Socialists . James Connolly , James Larkin and William O'Brien established
1360-539: The 1918 general election in order to allow the election to take the form of a plebiscite on Ireland's constitutional status (although some candidates did run in Belfast constituencies under the Labour banner against Unionist candidates). It also refrained from contesting the 1921 elections . As a result, the party was left outside Dáil Éireann during the vital years of the independence struggle. The Anglo-Irish Treaty divided
1445-459: The 1973 local elections . The Social Democratic and Labour Party founded in 1970 took most of Irish Labour's voters and soon had its formal endorsement. The seventies will be socialist. At the next general election Labour must . . . make a major breakthrough in seats and votes. It must demonstrate convincingly that it has the capacity to become the Government of this country. Our present position
1530-472: The 1984 European Parliament election for the Dublin constituency as a Workers' Party candidate. He briefly served as General Secretary of the Workers' Party from 1991–1992, succeeding Seán Garland and played a prominent role in events leading up to the split in that party. In 1992 Geraghty joined the newly founded Democratic Left party. He was appointed to the European Parliament in 1992 for
1615-509: The 1997 general election , held just weeks after spectacular electoral victories for the French Socialist Party and British Labour Party , as the first-ever choice between a government of the left and one of the right; but the party, as had often been the case following its participation in coalitions, lost support and lost half of its TDs. Labour's losses were so severe that while Fine Gael gained seats, it still came up well short of
1700-514: The Dublin North-West constituency. He retained his seat until the 2002 general election when he stood down in order to devote more time to his work in the European Parliament . In 1988, De Rossa succeeded Tomás Mac Giolla as president of the Workers' Party. The party had been growing steadily in the 1980s, and had its best-ever electoral performance in the general and European elections held in 1989 . The party won 7 Dáil seats with 5% of
1785-690: The Easter Rising in 1916 further damaged it. The Irish Citizen Army (ICA), formed during the 1913 Lockout, was informally the military wing of the Labour Movement. The ICA took part in the 1916 Rising. Councillor Richard O'Carroll , a Labour Party member of Dublin Corporation, was the only serving elected representative to be killed during the Easter Rising. O'Carroll was shot by John Bowen-Colthurst and died several days later, on 5 May 1916. The ICA
SECTION 20
#17330926944711870-678: The Euro-Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly . On 16 January 2012, he announced his decision to resign as an MEP, and stepped down on 1 February. During De Rossa's period as leader of Democratic Left, Irish journalist Eamon Dunphy , writing in the Sunday Independent newspaper, published an article alleging that De Rossa was aware, while a member of the Workers' Party, of the Official IRA's alleged illegal activities, including bank robberies and forgery. De Rossa sued
1955-582: The February 2020 election , the party's first preference vote dropped to 4.4%, a record low. In the subsequent Seanad elections , Labour won 5 seats, which tied them with Sinn Féin as the third-largest party in the House. After the general election, Brendan Howlin announced his intention to step down as the leader of the Labour Party. On 3 April 2020 Alan Kelly was elected as party leader , edging out fellow Dáil colleague Aodhán Ó Ríordáin 55% to 45%. In July 2021,
2040-448: The Group of the Party of European Socialists . De Rossa did not contest his Dáil seat at the 2002 general election . He was re-elected at the 2004 European Parliament election . As a member of the European Parliament, De Rossa took a strong pro-integration approach from a distinctly social democratic perspective, as well as a keen interest in foreign policy and social policy. De Rossa was
2125-455: The Official IRA , a topic which had been the subject of persistent and embarrassing media coverage. De Rossa called a Special Ardfheis (party conference) to debate changes to the constitution. The motion failed to get the required two-thirds majority, and subsequently De Rossa led the majority of the parliamentary group and councillors out of a meeting of the party's Central Executive Committee
2210-412: The leadership election , defeating Alex White by 78% to 22%. On her election, she said that the Labour Party "would focus on social repair, and govern more with the heart". Burton was the first woman to lead the Labour Party. In the 2016 general election , Labour achieved a poor result, receiving only 6.6% of first preference votes, and 7 seats. It was the worst general election in its history, with
2295-572: The 1989 Labour Party conference in Tralee a number of socialist and Trotskyist activists, organised around the Militant Tendency and their internal newspaper, were expelled. Amongst those expelled included future TDs Clare Daly , Ruth Coppinger and Mick Barry as well as Joe Higgins , who went on to found the Socialist Party in 1996. The early 1990s saw a sustained period of growth for
2380-500: The 2004 local elections, party leader Pat Rabbitte had endorsed a mutual transfer pact with Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny . Rabbitte proposed an extension of this strategy, named "the Mullingar Accord", going into the 2007 general election. Although Rabbitte's strategy was opposed by some influential members such as Brendan Howlin it was supported by approximately 80% of Labour conference delegates. However, at 2007 general election
2465-489: The Catholic Church or to take on a more militant labour approach. Despite efforts in the 1930s to sternly downplay the idea of Communist influence over the party, by the 1940s internal conflict and complementary allegations of communist infiltration caused a split in the Labour Party and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions. Tensions peaked in 1941 when party founder Jim Larkin and a number of his supporters were re-admitted to
2550-505: The Dublin constituency following the resignation of Proinsias De Rossa . He was a member of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs and Industrial Policy in the European Parliament. He did not contest the 1994 European Parliament election . He stood unsuccessfully as a Labour Party candidate in the 2002 Seanad election for the Labour Panel . Geraghty was a member of the board of
2635-528: The Dublin region. At the 2009 European Parliament election held on the same day, the Labour Party increased its number of seats from one to three, retaining the seat of Proinsias De Rossa in the Dublin constituency , while gaining seats in the East constituency with Nessa Childers , and in the South constituency with Alan Kelly . It was the first time since the 1979 European Parliament Elections that Labour had equalled
Proinsias De Rossa - Misplaced Pages Continue
2720-734: The Irish Labour Party on 28 May 1912, as the political wing of the Irish Trades Union Congress , in Clonmel Town Hall . This party was to represent the workers in the expected Dublin Parliament under the Third Home Rule Act 1914 . However, after the defeat of the trade unions in the Dublin Lockout of 1913 the labour movement was weakened; the emigration of James Larkin in 1914 and the execution of James Connolly following
2805-452: The Labour Party bore much of the blame for unpopular cutbacks in health and other public services . The nadir for the Labour party was the 1987 general election where it received only 6.4% of the vote. Its vote was increasingly threatened by the growth of the Marxist and more radical Workers' Party , particularly in Dublin. Fianna Fáil formed a minority government from 1987 to 1989 and then
2890-519: The Labour Party failed to increase its seat total and had a net loss of 1 seat, returning with 20 seats. Fine Gael, the Labour Party, the Green Party and independents did not have enough seats to form a government. Pat Rabbitte resisted calls to enter negotiations with Fianna Fáil on forming a government. Eventually, Fianna Fáil entered government with the Progressive Democrats and the Green Party with
2975-519: The Labour Party formed a coalition government with Fine Gael. The coalition partners lost the subsequent 1977 general election , and Corish resigned immediately after the defeat. In 1977, shortly after the election defeat, members grouped around the Liaison Committee for the Labour Left split from Labour and formed the short-lived Socialist Labour Party . From 1981 to 1982 and from 1982 to 1987,
3060-428: The Labour Party participated in coalition governments with Fine Gael . While serving in coalition Labour was successful in averting steep cuts in social welfare favoured by Fine Gael. Labour ministers also presided over a number of social policy initiatives such as a Family Income Supplement, a child care protection bill, a Maternity Benefit, a social employment scheme, the establishment of a Youth employment agency, and
3145-506: The Labour Party supported Éamon de Valera 's first Fianna Fáil government, which had proposed a programme of social reform with which the party was in sympathy. In the 1943 general election the party won 17 seats, its best result since 1927. The Irish Labour Party and the Irish Trades Union Congress separated in 1930. Future leader William Norton was prominent in urging the separation of the political and industrial wings of
3230-454: The Labour Party won a record 19.3% of the first preference votes, more than twice its share in the 1989 general election . The party's representation in the Dáil doubled to 33 seats in a momentum swing dubbed by the Irish national media as the "Spring Tide", who attributed much of the surge in the party's popularity to its leader Dick Spring . After a period of negotiations, the Labour Party formed
3315-513: The Labour Party's candidate, Michael D. Higgins was elected as the 9th (and current) President of Ireland . On the same day, Labour's Patrick Nulty won the Dublin West by-election , making the Labour Party the first government party in Ireland to win a by-election since 1982. Labour lost seven parliamentary members over the course of the 31st Dáil. On 15 November 2011 Willie Penrose resigned over
3400-561: The Labour Party. Some members sided with the Irregulars in the Irish Civil War that quickly followed, however O'Brien and Johnson encouraged its members to support the Treaty. In the 1922 general election the party won 17 seats, having fielded 18 candidates. Winning 21.4% of the first preference vote, this remains the party's highest ever share of the vote as of 2022. However, there were
3485-476: The Labour Party. In 1990 former Labour Senator Mary Robinson became the first President of Ireland to have been proposed by the Labour Party. Although she had contested the election as an independent candidate, having resigned from the party over her opposition to the Anglo Irish Agreement , her victory was generally considered as reflecting very well on Labour, who had supported her campaign. Not only
Proinsias De Rossa - Misplaced Pages Continue
3570-715: The Labour Party. The split and the anti-communist assault put Labour on the defensive. It launched its own inquiry into communist involvement, which resulted in the expulsion of six members. Alfred O'Rahilly in The Communist Front and the Attack on Irish Labour widened the assault to include the influence of British-based unions and communists in the ITUC. The National Labour Party juxtaposed itself against this by emphasising its commitment to Catholic Social Teaching. However, Labour also continued to emphasise its anti-communist credentials. It
3655-821: The National Labour TDs rejoined the Labour Party. From 1948 to 1951 and from 1954 to 1957, the Labour Party was the second-largest partner in the two inter-party governments (the largest being Fine Gael ). William Norton, the Labour Party leader, became Tánaiste on both occasions. During the First Inter-Party Government he served as Minister for Social Welfare , while during the Second Inter-Party Government he served as Minister for Industry and Commerce . (See first inter-party government and second inter-party government .) The Republic of Ireland Act 1948 and Ireland Act 1949 precipitated
3740-400: The adoption of an equa treatment directive. Nevertheless, as noted by one study, “voters did not reward them. Instead they were disappointed by Labour's inability to implement more of its own policies (Marsh and Mitchell 1999:49).” In the later part of the second of these coalition terms, the country's poor economic and fiscal situation required strict curtailing of government spending , and
3825-423: The bill, with spokesperson Ciarán Cuffe arguing that the bill was unconstitutional. At their 2010 national conference Labour passed a motion calling for transgender rights and to legislate for a gender recognition act. Des Geraghty Desmond Geraghty (born 27 October 1943) is an Irish former politician and trade union leader. He was president of SIPTU from 1999 to 2004. He stood unsuccessfully at
3910-509: The closure of an army barracks in his constituency. On 1 December 2011 Tommy Broughan lost the party whip after voting against the government in relation to the Bank Guarantee Scheme. On 6 December 2011 Patrick Nulty lost the party whip after voting against the VAT increase in the 2012 budget . On 26 September 2012 Róisín Shortall resigned as Minister of State for Primary Care and lost
3995-484: The co-operation achieved in practically all policy areas during the Rainbow Coalition, the party decided to merge with the Labour Party. Labour leader Ruairi Quinn continued as leader of the unified party; De Rossa took up the symbolic post of party president, which he held until 2002. In 1999, De Rossa was elected again at the European Parliament election for the Dublin constituency, sitting on this occasion with
4080-615: The collapse of the Fianna Fáil – Labour Party coalition government in 1994, Fine Gael, Labour and Democratic Left negotiated a government programme for the remaining life of the 27th Dáil, which became known as the Rainbow Coalition . De Rossa became Minister for Social Welfare . He initiated Ireland's first national anti-poverty strategy, a commission on the family, and a commission to examine national pension policy. Also under De Rossa, taxes on unemployment benefits were abolished, while
4165-494: The following Saturday at Wynn's Hotel, splitting the party. De Rossa and the other former Workers' Party members then established a new political party, provisionally called New Agenda. At its founding conference in March 1992, it was named Democratic Left and De Rossa was elected party leader. Later that year he resigned his European Parliament seat, where he was succeeded by Democratic Left general secretary Des Geraghty . Following
4250-469: The former leader Dick Spring. Members of Democratic Left in Northern Ireland were invited to join the Irish Labour Party but were not permitted to organise. Quinn resigned as leader in 2002 following the poor results for the Labour Party in the 2002 general election . Former Democratic Left TD Pat Rabbitte became the new leader, the first to be elected directly by the members of the party. Prior to
4335-479: The known world," due to its Catholic outlook in an Ireland where 95 percent of the population was Roman Catholic. It was known for its longstanding unwillingness (along with Ireland's other major parties) to support any policy that could be construed as sympathetic to secularism or communism. However, from the 1980s it was associated with advocacy for socially liberal policies, with former leader Eamon Gilmore stating in 2007 that "more than any other political movement, it
SECTION 50
#17330926944714420-609: The labour movement into autonomous organisations, arguing that the move was necessary to broaden the party's electoral appeal beyond a trade union constituency. The party was socially conservative compared to similar European parties, and its leaders from 1932 to 1977 ( William Norton and his successor Brendan Corish ) were members of the Catholic fraternal organisation the Knights of Saint Columbanus . The early to mid-20th century marked constant battles within Labour about whether to appease
4505-556: The late 1960s, Labour began to embrace the ' New Left ,' and Corish presented his A New Republic document at the 1967 Labour national conference, alongside a famous speech which declared that "The seventies will be socialist", which later became a Labour campaign slogan. Corish's new socialist direction for Labour was generally well-received internally; the membership's faith in Corish had already been bolstered by encouraging election results in 1965 and 1967 . Although Labour's share of
4590-436: The legalisation of civil partnerships and adoption for same-sex couples. The Fianna Fáil government amended the bill to delay it for six months time, however the Dáil was dissolved for the 2007 Irish general election before this could happen. Labour again brought this bill before the Dáil in 2007 but it was voted down by the government, with the Green Party , who had formerly supported gay marriage, also voting in opposition to
4675-429: The level of unemployment assistance for those living in the family home was increased substantially. A One Parent Family Allowance was also introduced, along with a Disability Allowance, Adoptive Benefit, Health and Safety Benefit and Survivor's Pension. The 1997 general election resulted in the defeat of the outgoing coalition. At this point, Democratic Left had accumulated a very significant financial debt. In light of
4760-551: The lower and middle classes. However, Labour later became associated with increasing secularism and championing socially liberal causes in relation to contraception, divorce, LGBT rights and abortion. Its support base also shifted greatly towards postmaterialists . The Labour Party also changed its position from Euroscepticism in 1972 to pro-Europeanism and ideological integration with European social democratic parties. The Labour Party has been involved in various campaigns for LGBT rights and put forward many bills. The party
4845-520: The morning mist and disappears again. We're the oldest party in the state". In the Irish local elections and the European Parliament election of May 2019, despite a decreased vote share by 1.4%, Labour increased their seat count on local authorities to 57, an increase of six. However, the party failed to win a European seat, leaving the S&;D Group unrepresented by an Irish MEP for the first time since 1984. At
4930-579: The newspaper for libel and was awarded IR£300,000. Labour Party (Ireland) The Labour Party ( Irish : Páirtí an Lucht Oibre , lit. ' Party of the Working People ' ) is a centre-left and social democratic political party in the Republic of Ireland . Founded on 28 May 1912 in Clonmel , County Tipperary , by James Connolly , James Larkin , and William O'Brien as
5015-599: The number of seats held in Europe by either Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael. On 11 June 2010, a poll by MRBI was published in The Irish Times which, for the first time in the history of the state, showed the Labour Party as the most popular, at 32%, ahead of Fine Gael at 28% and Fianna Fáil at 17%. Eamon Gilmore's approval ratings were also the highest of any Dáil leader, standing at 46%. At the 2011 general election , Labour received 19.5% of first preference votes, and 37 seats. It
5100-652: The party and subsequently accused of "taking over" Labour branches in Dublin. In response William X. O'Brien left with six TDs in 1944, founding the National Labour Party , whose leader was James Everett . O'Brien also withdrew the ITGWU from the Irish Trades Unions Congress and set up his own congress. The split damaged the Labour movement in the 1944 general election . The ITGWU attacked "Larkinite and Communist Party elements" which it claimed had taken over
5185-487: The party gained a seventh TD in the Dáil after Ivana Bacik won the 2021 Dublin Bay South by-election . In March 2022, Kelly resigned suddenly as leader, less than two years into the role and having not lead the party into an election. He did so upon being informed by Sean Sherlock and Duncan Smith , both of whom had supported him in his leadership bid, along with Mark Wall, that the parliamentary party had lost "collective confidence" in his leadership. The plan to remove him
SECTION 60
#17330926944715270-464: The party whip after conflict with the Minister for Health James Reilly . On 13 December 2012 Colm Keaveney lost the party whip after voting against the cut to the respite care grant in the 2013 budget . Senator James Heffernan lost the party whip in December 2012 after voting against the government on the Social Welfare Bill. MEP Nessa Childers resigned from the parliamentary party on 5 April 2013, saying that she "no longer want[ed] to support
5355-479: The party's ability to ensure it would hold on to its gains. Long-standing tensions within the Workers' Party, pitting reformers, including most of the party's TDs, against hard-liners centred on former general secretary Seán Garland , came to a head in 1992. Disagreements on policy issues were exacerbated by the desire of the reformers to ditch the democratic centralist nature of the party structures, and to remove any remaining questions about alleged party links with
5440-427: The party; although initially tempering by this describing these policies as "a form of Christian socialism ", he would later feel comfortable enough to drop the "Christian" prefix. In contrast to his predecessors, Corish adopted an anti-coalition stance. He attempted to give his fractious, divided party a coherent national identity, lurched it to the left and insisted Labour was the natural party of social justice . In
5525-465: The political wing of the Irish Trades Union Congress . Labour continues to be the political arm of the Irish trade union and labour movement and seeks to represent workers' interests in the Dáil and on a local level. Unlike many other Irish political parties, Labour did not arise as a faction of the original Sinn Féin party, although it merged with the Democratic Left in 1999, a party that traced its origins back to Sinn Féin . The party has served as
5610-460: The provision of goods and services on grounds listed including sexual orientation. At the 2002 general election , only the manifestos of the Green Party and Labour explicitly referred to the rights of same-sex couples. In 2003, Labour LGBT was founded. This was the first time a political party in Ireland had formed an LGBT wing. In December 2006, Labour TD Brendan Howlin tabled a private member's civil unions bill in Dáil Éireann , proposing
5695-438: The support it needed to keep Bruton in office. This, combined with a poor showing by Labour Party candidate Adi Roche in the subsequent election for President of Ireland , led to Spring's resignation as party leader. In 1997 Ruairi Quinn became the new Labour Party leader. Following negotiations in 1999, the Labour Party merged with Democratic Left , keeping the name of the larger partner. This had been previously opposed by
5780-488: The support of independents. In the aftermath, Rabbitte resigned as Labour Party leader in late August, taking responsibility for the general election result. In his wake Eamon Gilmore was elected, unopposed, as the new Labour leader. Following the onset of the post-2008 Irish economic downturn , Labour's political fortunes began to alter rapidly. At the local elections of 5 June 2009, the Labour Party added 31 new councillors to their tally and performed particularly well in
5865-446: The vote improved to 17% in the 1969 Irish general election , the best in 50 years, the party only won 17 seats - 5 fewer than in the 1965 general election. The result dented Corish's confidence and caused him to reconsider his anti-coalition stance. Labour promoted a Eurosceptic outlook in the 1961 general election, and in 1972, the party campaigned against membership of the European Economic Community (EEC). Between 1973 and 1977,
5950-410: The vote. De Rossa himself was elected to the European Parliament for the Dublin constituency, where he topped the poll and the party almost succeeded in replacing Fine Gael as the capital's second-largest party. He sat as a member of the Group for the European United Left . However, the campaign resulted in a serious build-up of financial debt by the Workers' Party, which threatened to greatly inhibit
6035-413: Was Labour and its allies which drove the modernisation of the Irish state." In the past Labour has been referred to, derisively, as "the political wing of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul ." That Labour was influenced by Catholicism is not unusual in the Irish context (likewise, both Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil were also products of a predominantly Catholic society). Labour's ethos and often its language
6120-525: Was a contributing factor to this loss. Larkin returned to Ireland in April 1923. He hoped to resume the leadership role in the ITGWU which he had previously left, but O'Brien resisted him. Larkin also created a pro-communist party called the Irish Worker League . O'Brien regarded Larkin as a "loose cannon." Following a failed challenge to O'Brien's leadership and association with communist militancy, Larkin
6205-426: Was confirmed as the new leader of the party unopposed at a conference in Dublin. At the 2024 European Parliament election , Aodhán Ó Ríordáin was elected in the Dublin constituency, the first MEP elected for the party since 2009. The Labour Party holds a pro-European stance and is a party of the centre-left which has been described as a social democratic party but is referred to in its constitution as
6290-477: Was devised by the parliamentary party in the home of Senator Marie Sherlock , in the absence of Kelly. An internal report reportedly showed that every one of the party's nationally elected representatives were at risk of losing their seats in the next general election. Kelly became emotional as he announced his resignation, stating that the decision by the parliamentary party was a "surprise" to him, but that he accepted it immediately. On 24 March 2022 Ivana Bacik
6375-804: Was educated at Marlborough Street National School and Dublin Institute of Technology . He joined Fianna Éireann at age 12. In May 1956, soon after his sixteenth birthday, he joined the Irish Republican Army (IRA), and was politically active in Sinn Féin from an early age. During the IRA border campaign , he was arrested while training other IRA members in Glencree in May 1957. He served seven months in Mountjoy Prison and
6460-562: Was expelled from the ITGWU and created the WUI, a communist alternative to the ITGWU, in 1924. Two-thirds of the Dublin membership of the ITGWU defected to the new union. O'Brien blocked the WUI from admission to the ITUC. Larkin was elected to Dáil Éireann at the September 1927 general election. However, the Labour Party prevented him from taking his seat as an undischarged bankrupt for losing a libel case against Labour leader Tom Johnson. In 1932,
6545-576: Was in government in 1993 when homosexuality was decriminalised in Ireland, and it was President Mary Robinson, herself a longstanding LGBT advocate, who signed the bill into law. Mervyn Taylor published the Employment Equality Bill in 1996, which was enacted in 1998, outlawing discrimination in the workplace on the grounds of sexual orientation. Taylor also published the Equal Status Bill in 1997, enacted in 2000, outlawing discrimination in
6630-423: Was it the first time a woman held the office but it was the first time, apart from Douglas Hyde , that a non- Fianna Fáil candidate was elected. It was also in 1990 that Limerick East TD Jim Kemmy 's Democratic Socialist Party merged into the Labour Party, and in 1992 Sligo–Leitrim TD Declan Bree 's Independent Socialist Party also followed suit and joined the Labour Party. At the 1992 general election
6715-404: Was only after Larkin's death in 1947 that an attempt at unity could be made. After the 1948 general election National Labour had five TDs – Everett, Dan Spring , James Pattison , James Hickey and John O'Leary . National Labour and Labour (with 14 TDs) both entered the First Inter-Party Government, with the leader of National Labour becoming Minister for Posts and Telegraphs . In 1950,
6800-464: Was profoundly Christian. Following the official separation of the Irish Labour Party and Irish Trade Union Congress into two different organisations in 1930, early drafts of Labour's constitution referred to the responsibilities of the 'Christian state', but these had all been removed by the time the constitution was put before the new party's conference for approval. However, the Free State's commitment to
6885-568: Was revived during Peadar O'Donnell 's Republican Congress but after the 1935 split in the Congress most ICA members joined the Labour Party. In Larkin's absence, William O'Brien became the dominant figure in the Irish Transport and General Workers' Union (ITGWU) and wielded considerable influence in the Labour Party. O'Brien also dominated the Irish Trades Union Congress . The Labour Party, led by Thomas Johnson from 1917, declined to contest
6970-646: Was strongest in Warrenpoint and Newry UDCs, winning control of the former in 1949 and the latter in 1958 , retaining seats in both until their 1973 abolition . Tommy Markey was expelled from the party in 1964 for taking a salute as Newry council chair from the Irish Guards . Party branches still existed in Warrenpoint and Newry as late as 1982, though candidates were heavily defeated in Newry and Mourne District Council at
7055-458: Was the most seats the Labour party had ever won in the Dáil, and their highest percentage of first-preference-votes since the Spring Tide of 1992. On 9 March 2011, it became the junior partner in a coalition government with Fine Gael for the period of the 31st Dáil . Eamon Gilmore was appointed as Tánaiste (deputy prime minister) and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade . In October 2011
7140-637: Was then interned at the Curragh Camp . He took the Official Sinn Féin side in the 1970 split. In 1977, he contested his first general election for the party, which that year was renamed Sinn Féin The Workers' Party (in 1982 the name changed again to the Workers' Party ). He was successful on his third attempt, and was elected at the February 1982 general election as a Sinn Féin The Workers' Party TD for
7225-503: Was won by Murtagh Morgan in 1953 and Paddy Devlin in 1962 , but Devlin in 1964 left for the Republican Labour Party and Irish Labour contested no further Westminster or Stormont elections. In the 1949 local elections it won 7 seats on Belfast City Council , 6 (unopposed) on Armagh urban district council (UDC) and one on Dungannon UDC. In Derry , the party collapsed when Stephen McGonagle left after 1952. It
#470529