Cathal Berry is an Irish

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

politician and retired soldier who has been a

Teachta Dála A Teachta Dála ( , ; plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in Irish, TDs in English), is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas (the Irish Parliament). It is the equivalent of terms such as ''Member of Parli ...

(TD) for the Kildare South constituency since the 2020 general election.

Military service

Originally from Ballyduff, County Waterford, Berry joined the army at the age of 18. Berry was a career Line Infantry officer and served for six years as the

second-in-command Second-in-command (2i/c or 2IC) is a title denoting that the holder of the title is the second-highest authority within a certain organisation. Usage In the British Army or Royal Marines, the second-in-command is the deputy commander of a unit, ...

(2IC) of the

Army Ranger Wing , image = , caption = Shoulder flash and insignia of the Army Ranger Wing , dates = – present , country = , branch = , command_structure = Defence Forces , garrison = DFTC, Curragh Camp, County Kildare , size = Classified , ty ...

, Ireland's special operations unit, before qualifying as a medical doctor and becoming the head of the Military Medical School of the

Irish Defence Forces The Defence Forces ( ga, Fórsaí Cosanta, officially styled ) derives its origins from the Irish Volunteers. Whilst the Irish for ''Defence Forces'' is , as Ó Cearúil (1999) points out, the Defence Forces are officially styled . is used in ...

. He deployed overseas five times, with NATO in Kosovo, the EU in Chad and the UN in the Middle East (Lebanon). Berry came to public attention in 2019, unusual for a soldier, particularly with service in the ARW, when upon retiring after 23 years in the Defence Forces, he spoke to the media about poor pay and conditions within the military and the disillusionment of military personnel with the perceived dysfunctional relationship between the military authorities and the

Department of Defence Department of Defence or Department of Defense may refer to: Current departments of defence * Department of Defence (Australia) * Department of National Defence (Canada) * Department of Defence (Ireland) * Department of National Defense (Philipp ...

. Berry called for the resignation of

Paul Kehoe Paul Kehoe (born 11 January 1973) is an Irish Fine Gael politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Wexford constituency since 2002. He was appointed Chair of the Committee on Education, Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovat ...

Minister of State at the Department of Defence The Minister of State at the Department of Defence ( ga, Aire Stáit ag an Roinn Cosanta) is a junior ministerial post in the Department of Defence of the Government of Ireland who performs duties and functions delegated by the Minister for Def ...

from 2011 to 2020, whom he described as an "empty suit" who has "presided over the demise of the Defence Force".

Education

Berry holds a bachelor's degree in Science and Master of Law in Peace Support Operations and International Humanitarian Law from

NUI Galway The University of Galway ( ga, Ollscoil na Gaillimhe) is a public research university located in the city of Galway, Ireland. A tertiary education and research institution, the university was awarded the full five QS stars for excellence in 201 ...

, a Bachelor of Medicine, Obstetrics and Surgery from the

Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) is a medical professional and educational institution, which is also known as RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ireland's first private university. It was established in 1784 ...

as well as qualifications in French language, and leadership, management and defence studies from

NUI Maynooth The National University of Ireland, Maynooth (NUIM; ga, Ollscoil na hÉireann Mhá Nuad), commonly known as Maynooth University (MU), is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland in Maynooth, County Kildare, Ireland. It w ...

Political career

Berry was elected to

Dáil Éireann Dáil Éireann ( , ; ) is the lower house, and principal chamber, of the Oireachtas (Irish legislature), which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann (the upper house).Article 15.1.2º of the Constitution of Ireland read ...

as an

TD for the Kildare South constituency at the 2020 general election. His campaign platform was "health, housing, the environment, education and Defence Force families".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Berry, Cathal Alumni of the University of Galway Alumni of Maynooth University Alumni of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland Independent TDs Military personnel from County Waterford Irish officials of the United Nations Living people Members of the 33rd Dáil United Nations Military Observers (people) Year of birth missing (living people)