The Department of the Taoiseach ( ga, Roinn an Taoisigh) is the
government department
Ministry or department (also less commonly used secretariat, office, or directorate) are designations used by first-level executive bodies in the machinery of governments that manage a specific sector of public administration." ÐнциклоР...
of the
Taoiseach
The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legislature) and the o ...
, the title in
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
for the
head of government
The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, ...
.
[Article 13.1.1° and Article 28.5.1° of the ]Constitution of Ireland
The Constitution of Ireland ( ga, Bunreacht na hÉireann, ) is the fundamental law of Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. The constitution, based on a system of representative democracy, is broadly within the traditi ...
. The latter provision reads: "The head of the Government, or Prime Minister, shall be called, and is in this Constitution referred to as, the Taoiseach.
It is based in
Government Buildings
Government Buildings ( ga, Tithe an Rialtais) is a large Edwardian period, Edwardian building enclosing a quadrangle on Merrion Street in Dublin, Ireland, in which several key offices of the Government of Ireland are located. Among the offices o ...
, the headquarters of the
Government of Ireland
The Government of Ireland ( ga, Rialtas na hÉireann) is the cabinet that exercises executive authority in Ireland.
The Constitution of Ireland vests executive authority in a government which is headed by the , the head of government. The gover ...
, on
Merrion Street
Merrion Street (; ) is a major Georgian street on the southside of Dublin, Ireland, which runs along one side of Merrion Square. It is divided into Merrion Street Lower (north end), Merrion Square West and Merrion Street Upper (south end). It ...
in
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...
.
The civil servant who heads the Department of the Taoiseach is known as the ''Secretary General of the Department'' and also serves as the
Cabinet Secretary.
Departmental team
*
Taoiseach
The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legislature) and the o ...
:
Leo Varadkar,
TD
**
Government Chief Whip:
Hildegarde Naughton
Hildegarde Naughton (born 1 May 1977) is an Irish Fine Gael politician who has served as Government Chief Whip and Minister of State at the Department of Health since December 2022. She has served as a Minister of State attending cabinet since ...
, TD
**
Minister of State for European Affairs
The Minister of State for European Affairs is a junior ministerial post at the Department of the Taoiseach and the Department of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Ireland with special responsibility for European Affairs. The Minister works w ...
:
Thomas Byrne, TD
*Secretary General of the Department: John Callinan
Functions
![Dublin-Dept-Of-Taoiseach-2012](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/Dublin-Dept-Of-Taoiseach-2012.JPG)
The main role of the Department is to support and advise the Taoiseach in carrying out various duties. The Department also supplies administrative support to the
Government Chief Whip in respect of his duties and provides the Secretariat to the Government. The Department has a pivotal role in acting as a link between the
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
* President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...
, the Taoiseach and other
Departments of State
The United States federal executive departments are the principal units of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States. They are analogous to ministries common in parliamentary or semi-presidential systems but (the Unite ...
.
In addition, the Department of the Taoiseach is involved in a number of other areas such as the development and co-ordination of policy in relation to economic and social development (
Social Partnership
Social partnership ( ga, PairtÃocht sóisialta) is the term used for the tripartite, triennial national pay agreements reached in Ireland.
The process was initiated in 1987, following a period of high inflation and weak economic growth which le ...
),
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
, the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...
and
Oireachtas reform. It also arranges State functions such as the annual
National Day of Commemoration
In Ireland, the National Day of Commemoration ( ga, Lá Cuimhneacháin Náisiúnta) commemorates all Irish people who died in past wars or United Nations peacekeeping missions.
It occurs on the Sunday nearest 11 July (see Irish Calendar), the a ...
,
Presidential inaugurations
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese fu ...
, State dinners and provides a protocol service to the Taoiseach of the day.
History
Article 53 of the
Constitution of the Irish Free State
The Constitution of the Irish Free State ( ga, Bunreacht Shaorstát Eireann) was adopted by Act of Dáil Éireann sitting as a constituent assembly on 25 October 1922. In accordance with Article 83 of the Constitution,[President of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State
The president of the Executive Council of the Irish Free State ( ga, Uachtarán ar Ard-Chomhairle Shaorstát Éireann) was the head of government or prime minister of the Irish Free State which existed from 1922 to 1937. He was the chairman of t ...]
. The Department was created by the
Ministers and Secretaries Act 1924
The Ministers and Secretaries Acts 1924 to 2020 is the legislation which governs the appointment of ministers to the Government of Ireland and the allocation of functions between departments of state. It is subject in particular to the provisi ...
as the Department of the President of the Executive Council, which came into operation on 2 June 1924. Under that act it was assigned:
The position of Taoiseach was created under Articles 13.1 and 28.5 of the
Constitution of Ireland
The Constitution of Ireland ( ga, Bunreacht na hÉireann, ) is the fundamental law of Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. The constitution, based on a system of representative democracy, is broadly within the traditi ...
, which was approved on 1 July 1937. Under the Constitution (Consequential Provisions) Act 1937, the Department of the President of the Executive Council was renamed as the Department of the Taoiseach from and after the
coming into operation of the Constitution of Ireland, which occurred on 29 December 1937.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Department Of The Taoiseach
Politics of the Republic of Ireland
Taoiseach
The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legislature) and the o ...
Ministries established in 1937
1937 establishments in Ireland