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Tánaiste
The Tánaiste ( , ) is the second-ranking member of the government of Ireland and the holder of its second-most senior office. It is the equivalent of the deputy prime minister in other parliamentary systems. The Tánaiste is appointed by the President of Ireland on the advice of the Taoiseach. The current office holder is Simon Harris, TD, who was appointed on 23 January 2025. History Under the Gaelic system of tanistry, the word (plural , , approximately ) had been used for the heir of the chief () or king (). The word was adopted in the 1937 Constitution of Ireland as the title for a member of the government nominated by the Taoiseach to act in their place as needed during periods of the Taoiseach's temporary absence. Tánaiste is the official title of the deputy head of government in both English and Irish, and is not used for other countries' deputy prime ministers, who are referred to in Irish by the generic term , , approximately . The longer Irish form, , is sometim ...
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Dick Spring
Richard Martin Spring (born 29 August 1950) is an Irish former Labour Party (Ireland), Labour Party politician who served as Tánaiste from 1982 to 1987, 1992 to November 1994, and December 1994 to 1997, Leader of the Labour Party (Ireland), Leader of the Labour Party from 1982 to 1997, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1993 to November 1994 and December 1994 to 1997, Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media, Minister for Energy from 1983 to 1987, and Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Minister for the Environment from 1982 to 1983. He was a Teachta Dála (TD) for Kerry North (Dáil constituency), Kerry North from 1981 to 2002. Before his political career, Spring was a successful sportsman who played for the Ireland national rugby union team and the Kerry GAA football and hurling teams. Early life Spring was born in Tralee, County Kerry in 1950, the son of Dan Spring, Dan and Anna Spring (). He wa ...
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Simon Harris
Simon Harris (born 17 October 1986) is an Irish Fine Gael politician serving as Tánaiste, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade and Minister for Defence since January 2025, having previously served as Taoiseach from 2024 to 2025. He has been leader of Fine Gael since 2024 and a TD for the Wicklow constituency since 2011. A Cabinet minister since 2016, he previously served as a minister of state from 2014 to 2016. Born in Greystones, Harris became politically active as a teenager, campaigning on behalf of children with autism and attention deficit disorder. He was elected to Wicklow County Council in the 2009 local elections. He was elected to Dáil Éireann at the 2011 general election, becoming the " baby of the Dáil" at age 24, and was appointed Minister of State at the Department of Finance in 2014. Following the formation of a Fine Gael minority government in 2016, he was appointed Minister for Health. On the formation of the coalition government in 20 ...
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Taoiseach
The Taoiseach (, ) is the head of government or prime minister of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The office is appointed by the President of Ireland upon nomination by 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 language, Irish word ''Wiktionary:taoiseach, 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 . The phrase ''an Taoiseach'' is sometimes used in an otherwise English-language context, and means the same as "the Taoiseach". The incumbent Taoiseach is Micheál Martin, Teachta Dála, TD, leader of Fianna Fáil, who took office on 23 Janu ...
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Politics Of The Republic Of Ireland
Republic of Ireland, Ireland is a parliamentary system, parliamentary, representative democracy, representative democratic republic and a member state of the European Union. While the head of state is the popularly elected President of Ireland, it is a largely ceremonial position, with real political power being vested in the Taoiseach, who is nominated by the Dáil and is the head of the Government of Ireland, government. Executive power is exercised by the Irish government, government, which consists of no more than 15 cabinet ministers, inclusive of the Taoiseach and Tánaiste (the deputy head of government). Legislative power is vested in the Oireachtas, the Bicameralism, bicameral national parliament, which consists of Dáil Éireann, Seanad Éireann and the President of Ireland. The judiciary is Judicial independence, independent of the executive and the legislature. The head of the judiciary is the Chief Justice of Ireland, Chief Justice, who presides over the Supreme C ...
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Government Of Ireland
The Government of Ireland () is the executive (government), executive authority of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, headed by the , the head of government. The government – also known as the cabinet (government), cabinet – is composed of Minister (government), ministers, each of whom must be a member of the , which consists of and . Ministers are usually assigned a Department of State (Ireland), government department with a wikt:portfolio, portfolio covering specific government policy, policy areas although provision exists for the appointment of a minister without portfolio (Ireland), minister without portfolio. The taoiseach must be Dáil vote for Taoiseach, nominated by the Dáil, the House of Representatives, from among its members. Following the nomination of the , the president of Ireland formally appoints the . The president also appoints members of the government on the nomination of the and their approval by the . The taoiseach nominates one member of the government ...
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Vice-President Of The Executive Council Of The Irish Free State
The vice-president of the Executive Council () was the deputy prime minister of the 1922–1937 Irish Free State, and the second most senior member of the Executive Council ( cabinet). Formally the vice-president was appointed by the Governor-General on the nomination of the president of the Executive Council, but by convention the Governor-General could not refuse to appoint a vice-president whom the president had selected. The office of Vice President of the Executive Council was established with the establishment of the Free State in 1922. Under Article 53 of the Free State constitution the role of the vice president was to "act for all purposes in the place of the President", until the appointment of a successor in the event of his death, resignation or "permanent incapacity", or until his return in the event of his "temporary absence". However, in practice the vice president also held a second ministerial portfolio, whose duties he carried out when not called upon to bec ...
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Government Of Ireland
The Government of Ireland () is the executive (government), executive authority of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, headed by the , the head of government. The government – also known as the cabinet (government), cabinet – is composed of Minister (government), ministers, each of whom must be a member of the , which consists of and . Ministers are usually assigned a Department of State (Ireland), government department with a wikt:portfolio, portfolio covering specific government policy, policy areas although provision exists for the appointment of a minister without portfolio (Ireland), minister without portfolio. The taoiseach must be Dáil vote for Taoiseach, nominated by the Dáil, the House of Representatives, from among its members. Following the nomination of the , the president of Ireland formally appoints the . The president also appoints members of the government on the nomination of the and their approval by the . The taoiseach nominates one member of the government ...
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Council Of State (Ireland)
The Council of State () is a body established by the Constitution of Ireland to advise the President of Ireland in the exercise of many of their discretionary, reserve powers. It also has authority to provide for the temporary exercise of the duties of the president if these cannot be exercised by either the president or the Presidential CommissionConstitution of Ireland, Article 14.4 (an eventuality that is very unlikely to occur, since it would require the simultaneous absence of the President and two members of the three-member Commission).Constitution of Ireland, Article 14.3 Members The Council of State consists of a number of government officials, who sit , as well as certain former office holders and up to seven individuals of the president's own choosing. The members comprise the attorney general as well as individuals from each of three branches of government: legislature, executive and judiciary. Unlike most of the president's other duties, which must be conducted ...
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President Of Ireland
The president of Ireland () is the head of state of Republic of Ireland, Ireland and the supreme commander of the Defence Forces (Ireland), Irish Defence Forces. The presidency is a predominantly figurehead, ceremonial institution, serving as the representative of the Irish state both at home and abroad. Nevertheless, the office of president is endowed with certain reserve powers which have constitutional importance. When invoking these powers, the president acts as the guardian of the Constitution of Ireland, Irish constitution. This representative and moderating role is in keeping with the president's solemn oath to "...maintain the Constitution of Ireland and uphold its laws..", to "...fulfil my duties faithfully and conscientiously in accordance with the Constitution and the law...", and to "...dedicate my abilities to the service and welfare of the people of Ireland." The president's official residence and principal workplace is in Phoenix Park, Dublin. Presidents hold o ...
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Tanistry
Tanistry is a Gaelic system for passing on titles and lands. In this system the Tanist (; ; ) is the office of heir-apparent, or second-in-command, among the (royal) Gaelic patrilineal dynasties of Ireland, Scotland and Mann, to succeed to the chieftainship or to the kingship. The word is preserved in the Republic of Ireland's government, where the prime minister is the ''Taoiseach'' while the deputy prime minister is the ''Tánaiste''. Origins Historically the tanist was chosen from among the heads of the ''roydammna'' or "righdamhna" (literally, those of ''kingly material'') or, alternatively, among all males of the '' sept'', and elected by them in full assembly. The eligibility was based on descent from a king to a few degrees of proximity. Usually descent from the male lines of a king was the norm, however in Scotland, descent through the female lines of a king was also accepted, possibly because of an intermingling with the Pictish succession rules. An example of th ...
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Deputy Prime Minister
A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a Minister (government), government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, as both positions are "number two" offices, but there are some differences. The states of Australia and provinces of Canada each have the analogous office of deputy premier. In the devolution, devolved administrations of the United Kingdom, an analogous position is that of the First Minister of Northern Ireland, deputy First Minister, albeit the position in Northern Ireland has equivalent powers to the First Minister differing only in the titles of the offices. In Canada, the position of deputy prime minister should not be confused with the Canadian Deputy Minister (Canada), deputy minister of the Prime Minister of Canada, prime minister of Canada, a nonpolitical civil servant position. In Austria and Germany, the ...
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