Mick Barry (born 17 September 1964) is an Irish

People Before Profit/Solidarity People Before Profit/Solidarity ( ga, Pobal Roimh Bhrabús/Dlúthphairtíocht, PBPS, PBP/S, or S-PBP) is a left-wing electoral alliance in the Republic of Ireland. It was formed by members of two socialist political parties in the Republic of Ir ...

politician 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 Parl ...

(TD) for the Cork North-Central constituency since the 2016 general election. Socialist Party (Ireland) poster in Dublin 2020

According to the ''

Irish Examiner The ''Irish Examiner'', formerly ''The Cork Examiner'' and then ''The Examiner'', is an Irish national daily newspaper which primarily circulates in the Munster region surrounding its base in Cork, though it is available throughout the country. ...

'', Barry was "a leading figure in the Cork and national campaigns" against household and water charges in the 2010s.

Political career

1989 to 2016

Dick Spring Dick Spring (born 29 August 1950) is an Irish businessman and former politician. He was a Labour Party Teachta Dála (TD) for the Kerry North from 1981 to 2002. He became leader of the Labour Party in 1982, and held this position until 1997 ...

expelled Barry, alongside Joe Higgins,

Clare Daly Clare Daly (born 16 April 1968) is an Irish politician who has been a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from Ireland for the Dublin constituency since July 2019. She is a member of Independents 4 Change, part of The Left in the European P ...

Ruth Coppinger Ruth Coppinger (born 18 April 1967) is an Irish politician and member of the Socialist Party. She was elected as a Teachta Dála (TD) in the Dublin West constituency in 2014. In the 2016 general election, she ran as a candidate for Anti-Aus ...

and 10 others, from the Labour Party in 1989 for their membership of the

Militant tendency , native_name_lang = cy , logo = , colorcode = , leader = collective leadership(''Militant'' editorial board) , leader1_name = Ted Grant , leader1_title = Political Secretary , leader2_name = Pet ...

. Barry was first elected as a member of

Cork City Council Cork City Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach Chorcaí) is the authority responsible for local government in the city of Cork in Ireland. As a city council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. Prior to the enactment of the 2001 Act, t ...

in June 2004 and re-elected in June 2009 and May 2014 (both times on the first count). He also stood as a candidate in the Cork North-Central constituency at the

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple Inc., Apple's first iPhone (1st generation), iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakis ...

and 2011 general elections. On 1 May 2013, gardaí arrested five members of the

Campaign Against Home and Water Taxes The Campaign Against Home and Water Taxes (CAHWT) was a group opposed to the introduction of property and water taxes in the Republic of Ireland. It called for the boycott to be used to this effect. The campaign launched on 22 December 2011. It h ...

, including Barry and fellow

lor Ted Tynan of the Workers' Party, during a midday protest inside the

St Patrick's Street St Patrick's Street ( ga, Sráid Naomh Pádraig) is the main shopping street of the city of Cork in the south of Ireland. The street was subject to redevelopment in 2004, and has since won two awards as Ireland's best shopping street. St Patrick ...

branch of the

Bank of Ireland Bank of Ireland Group plc ( ga, Banc na hÉireann) is a commercial bank operation in Ireland and one of the traditional Big Four Irish banks. Historically the premier banking organisation in Ireland, the Bank occupies a unique position in Iris ...

in the city. People gathered on the street. Cllr Tynan said he felt a need to stand up against

austerity Austerity is a set of political-economic policies that aim to reduce government budget deficits through spending cuts, tax increases, or a combination of both. There are three primary types of austerity measures: higher taxes to fund spend ...

. In the 2010s Barry campaigned on a number of issues locally and nationally, notably the Anti-Bin Tax Campaign with the Householders Against Service Charges (HASC) in Cork, In support of local services in the Cork area such as the cutbacks in bus services, and against the building of a private hospital on the public grounds of

Cork University Hospital Cork University Hospital ( ga, Ospidéal na hOllscoile Corcaigh) is a large university teaching hospital in Wilton, Cork in Ireland. Its academic partner is University College Cork. It is the only Level 1 Trauma Centre in Ireland. It is a public ...

, and social housing. He called for a ban on home repossessions and considered a controversial Gateway employment scheme to be "slave labour". He called for standing orders to be suspended and proposed a motion condemning the jailing of five activists opposing a proposed tax on water.

2016 to present: Member of the Dáil

A founding member of the

Anti-Austerity Alliance Solidarity ( ga, Neart le Chéile), formerly known as the Anti-Austerity Alliance (AAA), is a socialist political party in Ireland, launched in 2014. It had been registered as a political party to contest local elections, and ran at least forty c ...

(AAA), Barry was elected for the AAA–PBP group, in the 2016 general election, on his fourth attempt. At the 2020 general election, he was re-elected as a Solidarity–People Before Profit TD.

Personal life

Barry was born in

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, capital of the U.S. state of Ohio Columbus may also refer to: Places ...

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

in 1964. His family returned to Ireland in 1971 when he was 8 years old, and moved to Rathfarnham 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 ...

. Barry moved to

Cork City Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the island of Ireland. It is located in the south-west of Ireland, in the province of Munster. Following an extension to the city's ...

in 1991Roche, Barry
"Socialist Party candidate raises red flag in the heart of Cork's north side"
. 19 February 2011. ''The Irish Times''
(archive link)
/ref> and has remained a resident ever since, living in the suburb of Blackpool.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barry, Mick 1964 births American emigrants to Ireland Labour Party (Ireland) politicians Living people Local councillors in Cork (city) Members of the 32nd Dáil Members of the 33rd Dáil People Before Profit/Solidarity TDs Socialist Party (Ireland) politicians