Peter Power (born 26 January 1966) is a former 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. He was 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

Limerick East 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, Ireland, Southern Region. With a populati ...

constituency from 2002 to 2011, and served as Minister of State for Overseas Development from 2008 to 2011. He has been executive director of

UNICEF Ireland UNICEF Ireland, also known as the Irish National Committee for UNICEF, is one of 36 UNICEF National Committees based in industrialised countries. The National Committees raise funds for the organisation's worldwide emergency and development w ...

Early and private life

Power 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 ...

, but moved to Dublin after losing his seat at the 2011 general election. He was educated at JFK Memorial School, Ardscoil Rís and

University College Cork University College Cork – National University of Ireland, Cork (UCC) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile Corcaigh) is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland, and located in Cork. The university was founded in 1845 as one of ...

(UCC). Previous to his election as a TD he worked as a

solicitor A solicitor is a legal practitioner who traditionally deals with most of the legal matters in some jurisdictions. A person must have legally-defined qualifications, which vary from one jurisdiction to another, to be described as a solicitor and ...

at Holmes O'Malley Sexton in Limerick.

Political career

Power first contested national elections at the 1997 general election but was unsuccessful on this attempt. He contested the 1999 local elections in the No. 1 electoral area 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 ...

and was the only Fianna Fáil candidate across all four areas to top the poll and become a Limerick City Councillor. Michael Ryan was co-opted in his place in 2003 due to the abolition of the

dual mandate A dual mandate is the practice in which elected officials serve in more than one elected or other public position simultaneously. This practice is sometimes known as double jobbing in Britain and ''cumul des mandats'' in France; not to be confused ...

. 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 the 2002 general election as a Fianna Fáil TD. He was re-elected at the 2007 general election. He chaired the Joint

Oireachtas The Oireachtas (, ), sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the Bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of: *The President of Ireland *The bicameralism, two houses of the Oireachtas ...

Child Protection Committee established by the Oireachtas following the fall-out surrounding the May 2006 Supreme Court judgement in the ''CC Case''. The Committee was convened in July 2006 and made its report in November of the same year. Power also served as a member of the Justice and Transportation committees. In May 2008, he was appointed as Minister of State for Overseas Development and re-appointed by

Taoiseach The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Republic of Ireland, 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 legisl ...

Brian Cowen Brian Bernard Cowen (born 10 January 1960) is an Irish former politician who served as Taoiseach and Leader of Fianna Fáil from 2008 to 2011. Cowen was elected to Dáil Éireann in 1984, for the constituency of Laois–Offaly and served in a ...

on 22 April 2009 following the reduction in the number of

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 o ...

from 20 to 15 in which seven serving ministers were not re-appointed. He lost his seat at the 2011 general election. In December 2011 Power was appointed executive director of

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Power, Peter 1966 births Living people Alumni of University College Cork Fianna Fáil TDs Local councillors in County Limerick Members of the 29th Dáil Members of the 30th Dáil Ministers of State of the 30th Dáil People associated with the University of Limerick Politicians from Limerick (city) People educated at Ardscoil Rís, Limerick