Neasa Hourigan (born October 1980) is an Irish

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as social justice, environmentalism and nonviolence. Greens believe that these issues are inherently related to one another as a foundation ...

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 Parli ...

(TD) for the Dublin Central constituency since the 2020 general election. She was Chair of the Committee on Budgetary Oversight from September 2020 until being suspended from the parliamentary party in March 2023.

Early life

Hourigan was born in

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

. Her father Michael Hourigan is a former

Fine Gael Fine Gael (, ; English: "Family (or Tribe) of the Irish") is a liberal-conservative and Christian-democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil � ...

member of

Limerick City Council Limerick City Council ( ga, Comhairle Cathrach Luimnigh) was the authority responsible for local government in the city of Limerick in Ireland. The council had 17 elected members. The head of the council had the title of Mayor. Limerick City ...

as well as a former

Mayor of Limerick The office of Mayor of the City and County of Limerick is currently the title used by the chairperson of Limerick City and County Council. Prior to the establishment of the council, the Mayor of Limerick was the chairperson of Limerick City Counc ...

. Neasa was educated at Laurel Hill Coláiste FCJ. She graduated with a

Bachelor of Architecture The Bachelor of Architecture (B.Arch.) is a bachelor's degree designed to satisfy the academic requirement of practising architecture around the world. Australia Architectural education in Australia varies depending on the university offering th ...

from

Technological University Dublin Technological University Dublin ( ga, Ollscoil Teicneolaíochta Bhaile Átha Cliath) or TU Dublin is Ireland's first technological university, established on 1 January 2019, and with a history stretching back to 1887 through the amalgamated Dub ...

, a

Master of Architecture The “Master of Architecture”(M.Arch or MArch) or a “Bachelor of Architecture” is a professional degree in architecture, qualifying the graduate to move through the various stages of professional accreditation (internship, exams) that res ...

from

University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland ...

, a Post Graduate Certificate in Higher Education and has lectured in sustainable communities, environmental design and green procurement at both

Queen's University Belfast , mottoeng = For so much, what shall we give back? , top_free_label = , top_free = , top_free_label1 = , top_free1 = , top_free_label2 = , top_free2 = , established = , closed = , type = Public research university , parent = ...

and Technological University Dublin.

Political career

Hourigan joined the Green Party in 2011. She was elected to represent Cabra-

Glasnevin Glasnevin (, also known as ''Glas Naedhe'', meaning "stream of O'Naeidhe" after a local stream and an ancient chieftain) is a neighbourhood of Dublin, Ireland, situated on the River Tolka. While primarily residential, Glasnevin is also home t ...

local electoral area on

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 ...

at the 2019 local elections. She is the Green Party's Spokesperson for Finance and Health. Hourigan helped to establish the Irish Pedestrian Network born out of Dublin Blockers, a social media campaign she started in 2018 highlighting the issues pedestrians in Central Dublin were facing. Within this network, she organised an activist group, Streets are for People. At the 2020 general election, Hourigan was elected as a TD for Dublin Central. Darcy Lonergan was then co-opted to Hourigan's seat on Dublin City Council. On 22 July 2020, Hourigan was amongst several prominent members of the Green Party who formed the "Just Transition Greens", an affiliate group within the party with a

green left The term green left refers primarily to a political affiliation that combines elements of green politics and left-wing politics in countries where the term is used. It is primarily a social justice and human rights oriented ideology, with an expa ...

eco-socialist Eco-socialism (also known as green socialism or socialist ecology) is an ideology merging aspects of socialism with that of green politics, ecology and alter-globalization or anti-globalization. Eco-socialists generally believe that the expansi ...

outlook, who have the objective of pressuring the party towards more hardline policies based on the concept of a

Just Transition Just transition is a framework developed by the trade union movement to encompass a range of social interventions needed to secure workers' rights and livelihoods when economies are shifting to sustainable production, primarily combating climat ...

. On 30 July 2020, Hourigan resigned as

party whip A whip is an official of a political party whose task is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. This means ensuring that members of the party vote according to the party platform, rather than according to their own individual ideology ...

of the

, but did not leave the party after voting against the

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

twice on amendments to the Residential Tenancies Bill. She was later sanctioned by

party leader In a governmental system, a party leader acts as the official representative of their political party, either to a legislature or to the electorate. Depending on the country, the individual colloquially referred to as the "leader" of a political ...

Eamon Ryan Eamon Michael Ryan (born 28 July 1963) is an Irish Green Party politician who has served as Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications and Minister for Transport since June 2020 and Leader of the Green Party since May 2011. He ha ...

by having her speaking rights withdrawn for two months. In December 2020 Hourigan, alongside fellow Green TD Patrick Costello, spoke out against the entry of Ireland into the

Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is a free-trade agreement between Canada and the European Union and its member states. It has been provisionally applied, thus removing 98% of the preexisting tariffs between the two parts. ...

(CETA), a trade agreement between Canada and members of the EU, due to fears about the proposed "Investment court system". The investment court system is designed to act as a method of solving business disputes between investors and participating countries. Hourigan and Costello argued that the court system would allow Canadians investing in Ireland to sue the state if the state impeded their profits, such as with environmentalist laws, and this was a major threat to Ireland's sovereignty. On 17 May 2022 Costello and Hourigan were both suspended from the Green Party for six months after they voted against the government on a motion calling for the new National Maternity Hospital to be built on land wholly owned by the state. Before the vote, Hourigan explained her rationale by saying she could not support the government's decision to approve plans to move the National Maternity Hospital from Holles Street to the St Vincent's Hospital campus due to concerns over the governance and ethos at the new facility, which is to be built on a site ultimately leased from the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, and with fears in some quarters that potential lingering religious influence could mean abortions or fertility treatment would not be allowed to take place at the new hospital. The government coalition parties (

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- ...

and the Greens) had been whipped to abstain on the motion. Costello and Hourigan were re-admitted to the parliamentary party in November 2022. On 7 March 2023, Hourigan criticised the government for its decision to end the eviction ban, calling the decision "heartless". Hourigan also spoke out against Green Party leader Eamon Ryan, saying that he did not speak to the party's policies. Senator and Green Party Chair

Pauline O'Reilly Pauline O'Reilly is an Irish Green Party politician who has served as a Senator for the Labour Panel since April 2020 and Cathaoirleach of the Green Party since December 2021. Early life and education O'Reilly is a qualified solicitor. She is ...

rebuked Hourigan's remarks and said that it was "clear Neasa didn't have all the facts". On 22 March 2023 Hourigan was suspended from the Green Parliamentary Party for fifteen months and removed from her committee position for voting against the government on an amendment to a

Sinn Féin Sinn Féin ( , ; en, " eOurselves") is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active throughout both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Gri ...

motion calling for the extension of the eviction ban.

Personal life

Hourigan lives in

Cabra, Dublin Cabra () is an inner suburb on the northside of Dublin city in Ireland. It is approximately northwest of the city centre, in the administrative area of Dublin City Council. It was commonly known as Cabragh until the early 20th century. Large ...

. She has three children, one of whom is hard of hearing and is registered as blind.

References

External links

Green Party profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hourigan, Neasa 1980 births Living people Alumni of Dublin Institute of Technology Alumni of Queen's University Belfast Alumni of University College Dublin Green Party (Ireland) TDs 21st-century Irish architects Members of Dublin City Council Members of the 33rd Dáil 21st-century women Teachtaí Dála Politicians from County Limerick Architects from County Limerick Green Party (Ireland) local councillors