John Minihan (born 24 November 1957) is a former Irish politician who served as a member of Seanad Éireann for the Progressive Democrats. He had previously served in 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 ...

where he attained the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

. He stood as Progressive Democrat candidate for the Cork South-Central constituency at the 2007 general election.

Life before politics

Born in

County Cork County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns are ...

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 ...

, Minihan entered Military College in November 1975 and was stationed in the Eastern Command section. He served three tours of duty with

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

peacekeeping Peacekeeping comprises activities intended to create conditions that favour lasting peace. Research generally finds that peacekeeping reduces civilian and battlefield deaths, as well as reduces the risk of renewed warfare. Within the United N ...

forces in

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

. After his final tour of duty in Lebanon, he returned to Cork where he served as

Adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of human resources in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed forces as a non-commission ...

Collins Barracks Collins Barracks ( ga, Dún Uí Choileáin) is a former military barracks in the Arbour Hill area of Dublin, Ireland. The buildings now house the National Museum of Ireland – Decorative Arts and History. Previously housing both British Arm ...

. In 1996 he retired at the rank of

to run the family

pharmacy Pharmacy is the science and practice of discovering, producing, preparing, dispensing, reviewing and monitoring medications, aiming to ensure the safe, effective, and affordable use of medicines. It is a miscellaneous science as it links heal ...

business.

Political career

Minihan entered local politics in 1999 when he was elected to Cork City Council for the Progressive Democrats. In July 2003 he was elected Chairman of the Progressive Democrats. He unsuccessfully contested the 2002 general election, where he polled 3,126 first preferences votes in the Cork North Central constituency. He was a member of the three-man team representing the Progressive Democrats which negotiated the terms under which the party entered government in

coalition A coalition is a group formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political or economical spaces. Formation According to ''A Gui ...

with

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- ...

. Subsequently, he was recommended by

Mary Harney Mary Harney (born 11 March 1953) is an Irish former politician and the current Chancellor of the University of Limerick. She was leader of the Progressive Democrats party between 1993 and 2006 and again from 2007 to 2008, resuming the role aft ...

, then Progressive Democrat party leader and

Tánaiste The Tánaiste ( , ) is the deputy head of the government of Ireland and thus holder of its second-most senior office. The Tánaiste is appointed by the President of Ireland on the advice of the Taoiseach. The current office holder is former Taoi ...

, Minihan was

nominated by the Taoiseach A candidate, or nominee, is the prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position; for example: * to be elected to an office — in this case a candidate selection procedure occurs. * t ...

Bertie Ahern Bartholomew Patrick "Bertie" Ahern (born 12 September 1951) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach from 1997 to 2008, Leader of Fianna Fáil from 1994 to 2008, Leader of the Opposition from 1994 to 1997, Tánaiste a ...

to the Seanad Éireann, where on the 12 September he made his maiden speech speaking on the

Treaty of Nice The Treaty of Nice was signed by European leaders on 26 February 2001 and came into force on 1 February 2003. It amended the Maastricht Treaty (or the Treaty on European Union) and the Treaty of Rome (or the Treaty establishing the European Co ...

. He worked in a number of committees and jobs including Chairman of the Progressive Democrat parliamentary party. He was coordinator of the Oireachtas Joint Houses Friends of Science Committee. He served as a member of the Joint Oireachtas committees on Education and Science, and party spokesman on Education, Defence and Childcare. On the abolishment of dual mandate in 2003, he resigned his seat on Cork City Council which was filled by co-option. The party seat was not retained by the PD's in the 2004 local elections. In January 2006 he was selected to run for a Dáil seat representing the Progressive Democrats in the Cork South-Central at the 2007 general election, but did not win a seat, getting 1,596 first preference votes. He was not returned to the Seanad in the 2007 Seanad election. Minihan is retired from politics.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Minihan, John 1957 births Progressive Democrats senators Members of the 22nd Seanad Living people Local councillors in Cork (city) Nominated members of Seanad Éireann