Gerard Brady (1 July 1936 – 16 May 2020) was an Irish

Fianna Fáil Fianna Fáil (, ; meaning 'Soldiers of Destiny' or 'Warriors of Fál'), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party ( ga, audio=ga-Fianna Fáil.ogg, Fianna Fáil – An Páirtí Poblachtánach), is a conservative and Christian- ...

politician who served as Minister for Education from October to December 1982. Brady was born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

in 1936. He was educated at St. Mary's College in

Rathmines Rathmines () is an affluent inner suburb on the Southside of Dublin in Ireland. It lies three kilometres south of the city centre. It begins at the southern side of the Grand Canal and stretches along the Rathmines Road as far as Rathgar to t ...

and later at the College of Science and Technology and the College of Pharmacy in the city. Following his graduation he worked as an ophthalmic optician. Brady's first entry into the political scene was at local level when he was elected to

Dublin City Council Dublin City Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach Bhaile Átha Cliath) is the authority responsible for local government in the city of Dublin in Ireland. As a city council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. Until 2001, the council wa ...

in 1974. At the 1977 general election he 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 ...

at his first attempt, succeeding his father Philip Brady as Fianna Fáil

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 Dublin Rathmines West constituency. He represented Dublin South-East from 1981 onwards. He was appointed Minister of State at the Department of the Environment by

Charles Haughey Charles James Haughey (; 16 September 1925 – 13 June 2006) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach on three occasions – 1979 to 1981, March to December 1982 and 1987 to 1992. He was also Minister for the Gaeltacht from ...

in March 1982. Following the resignation of Martin O'Donoghue as Minister for Education on 6 October that year, Haughey chose to make himself acting Minister for three weeks before appointing Brady to the post on 27 October. Less than a month later Fianna Fáil lost the November 1982 general election, and

Gemma Hussey Gemma Hussey (; born 11 November 1938) is an Irish former Fine Gael politician who served as Minister for Social Welfare from 1986 to 1987, Minister for Labour from January 1987 to March 1987, Minister for Education from 1982 to 1986, Leader ...

became the new Minister for Education on 14 December. Brady's Cabinet tenure is one of the shortest in history. He was reappointed to the opposition frontbench but was not given a ministerial job when the party returned to power in

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...

, nor in 1989. He lost his seat at the 1992 general election to party colleague Eoin Ryan, and subsequently retired from political life. Brady died on 16 May 2020, in

Donnybrook, Dublin Donnybrook () is a district of Dublin, Ireland. It is situated on the southside of the city, in the Dublin 4 postal district, and is home to the Irish public service broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ). It was once part of the Pemb ...

, aged 82.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brady, Gerard 1936 births 2020 deaths Fianna Fáil TDs Members of the 21st Dáil Members of the 22nd Dáil Members of the 23rd Dáil Members of the 24th Dáil Members of the 25th Dáil Members of the 26th Dáil Members of Dublin City Council Ministers for Education (Ireland) Ministers of State of the 23rd Dáil

See also

References