Noel Davern (24 December 1945 – 27 October 2013) 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 Christia ...
politician who served as
Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In ...
from 1997 to 2002 and
Minister for Education from 1991 to 1992. He served as 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
Tipperary South constituency from 1969 to 1981 and 1987 to 2007. He served as a
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament.
When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...
(MEP) for the
Munster constituency from 1979 to 1984.
Career
Davern was born in
Cashel, County Tipperary
Cashel (; ) is a town in County Tipperary in Ireland. Its population was 4,422 in the 2016 census. The town gives its name to the ecclesiastical province of ''Cashel''. Additionally, the ''cathedra'' of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cashel ...
, in 1945.
He was educated at
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
Cashel and at Franciscan College in
County Meath
County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the ...
. His family had a long political tradition. His father
Michael Davern was a Fianna Fáil TD from 1948 to 1965, when he was succeeded in
Dáil Éireann by Noel's brother
Don Davern. After Don's sudden death in 1968, the seat remained vacant until Noel was elected to
Dáil Éireann at the
1969 general election.
At the
1979 European Parliament election
The 1979 European Parliament election was a series of parliamentary elections held across all 9 (at the time) European Community member states. They were the first European elections to be held, allowing citizens to elect 410 MEPs to the Europe ...
he was elected as an
MEP for the
Munster constituency. He did not contest the
1981 general election so as to concentrate his time as an MEP. However, he lost his seat at the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
at the
1984 European Parliament election
Events
January
* January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888.
* January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...
.
Davern was again elected to Dáil Éireann at the
1987 general election, and came to national prominence in 1991 when he was appointed to the
Cabinet as
Minister for Education. This was in the wake of
Albert Reynolds
Albert Martin Reynolds (3 November 1932 – 21 August 2014) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach from 1992 to 1994, Leader of Fianna Fáil from 1992 to 1994, Minister for Finance from 1988 to 1991, Minister for Indust ...
and
Pádraig Flynn
Pádraig Flynn (born 9 May 1939) is a former Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as European Commissioner for Social Affairs from 1993 to 1999, Minister for Industry and Commerce and Minister for Justice from 1992 to 1993, Minister for th ...
's failed attempt to oust
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 ...
as
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 ...
. Davern's stay in government was short-lived because Reynolds became Taoiseach in early 1992 and he was again sent to the backbenches. In 1995, he became Opposition Spokesman on European Affairs when
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 ...
named his new front bench. Fianna Fáil were returned to government and Davern became
Minister of State
Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In ...
at the
Department of Agriculture and Food. He served in that position until 2002.
Davern was one of only three
Members of the 29th Dáil
The 29th Dáil was elected at the 2002 general election on 17 May 2002 and met on 6 June 2002. The members of Dáil Éireann, the house of representatives of the Oireachtas (legislature) of Ireland, are known as TDs. The 29th Dáil was diss ...
who had first been elected in the 1960s, the others being
Séamus Pattison
Séamus Pattison (19 April 1936 – 4 February 2018) was an Irish Labour Party politician who served as Leas-Cheann Comhairle of Dáil Éireann from 2002 to 2007, Ceann Comhairle of Dáil Éireann from 1997 to 2002, Minister of State for So ...
, elected at the
1961 general election and
Michael Smith, also elected at the 1969 general election.
He died on 27 October 2013.
See also
*
Families in the Oireachtas
There is a tradition in Irish politics of having family members succeed each other, frequently in the same parliamentary seat. This article lists families where two or more members of that family have been members ( TD or Senator) of either of th ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davern, Noel
1945 births
2013 deaths
Local councillors in South Tipperary
Fianna Fáil TDs
Members of the 19th Dáil
Members of the 20th Dáil
Members of the 21st Dáil
Members of the 25th Dáil
Members of the 26th Dáil
Members of the 27th Dáil
Members of the 28th Dáil
Members of the 29th Dáil
Politicians from County Tipperary
Fianna Fáil MEPs
MEPs for the Republic of Ireland 1979–1984
Ministers for Education (Ireland)
Ministers of State of the 28th Dáil