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The Progressive Democrats ( ga, An Páirtí Daonlathach, literally "The Democratic Party" ), commonly referred to as the PDs, was a conservative-liberal
political party in the Republic of Ireland There are a number of political parties in Ireland, and coalition governments are common. The two historically largest parties, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, arose from a split in the original Sinn Féin, Fine Gael from the faction Cumann na nGaed ...
. Launched on 21 December 1985 by
Desmond O'Malley Desmond Joseph O'Malley (2 February 1939 – 21 July 2021) was an Irish politician who served as Minister for Industry and Commerce from 1977 to 1981 and 1989 to 1992, Leader of the Progressive Democrats from 1985 to 1993, Minister for Trade, ...
and other politicians who had split from
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
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 ...
, the Progressive Democrats took liberal positions on
divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...
,
contraception Birth control, also known as contraception, anticonception, and fertility control, is the use of methods or devices to prevent unwanted pregnancy. Birth control has been used since ancient times, but effective and safe methods of birth contr ...
and other social issues. The party also supported
economic liberalisation Economic liberalization (or economic liberalisation) is the lessening of government regulations and restrictions in an economy in exchange for greater participation by private entities. In politics, the doctrine is associated with classical liber ...
, advocating measures such as lower
tax A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, or n ...
ation,
fiscal conservatism Fiscal conservatism is a political and economic philosophy regarding fiscal policy and fiscal responsibility with an ideological basis in capitalism, individualism, limited government, and ''laissez-faire'' economics.M. O. Dickerson et al., ''An ...
,
privatisation Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...
and welfare reform. It enjoyed an impressive début at the 1987 general election, winning 14 seats in
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 ...
and capturing almost 12 per cent of the popular vote to temporarily surpass the Labour Party as Ireland's third-largest political party. Although the Progressive Democrats never again won more than 10 seats in the Dáil, they formed coalition governments 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- ...
during the
26th Dáil 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...
(1989–92), the 28th Dáil (1997–2002), the
29th Dáil 9 (nine) is the natural number following and preceding . Evolution of the Arabic digit In the beginning, various Indians wrote a digit 9 similar in shape to the modern closing question mark without the bottom dot. The Kshatrapa, Andhra and ...
(2002–07) and the 30th Dail (2007–09). These successive years as the government's junior coalition partner gave the party an influence on Irish politics and
economics Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...
disproportionate to its small size. In particular, the party was credited with shaping the low-tax, pro-business environment that contributed to Ireland's
Celtic Tiger The "Celtic Tiger" ( ga, An Tíogar Ceilteach) is a term referring to the economy of Ireland from the mid-1990s to the late 2000s, a period of rapid real economic growth fuelled by foreign direct investment. The boom was dampened by a subseque ...
economic boom during the 1990s and 2000s, as well as blamed for contributing to the subsequent Irish financial and economic crisis. On 8 November 2008 the party began the process of disbanding, and was formally dissolved on 20 November 2009. The two Progressive Democrat politicians elected to the 30th Dáil,
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 ...
and
Noel Grealish Noel Grealish (born 16 December 1965) is an Irish Independent politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Galway West constituency since the 2002 general election. Political career He is from the Gaeltacht region of Carnmore, near G ...
, continued to support the government as independent TDs, and Harney also continued as Minister for Health and Children. The party was a member of the
European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe a ...
(ELDR). Its youth wing was the
Young Progressive Democrats The Young Progressive Democrats were the youth wing of the Irish political party, the Progressive Democrats. Weakened after the party's poor showing in the 1997 elections, they were completely reformed on a national basis after the 2002 general ...
.


History


Foundation

The party was founded in 1985 by
Desmond O'Malley Desmond Joseph O'Malley (2 February 1939 – 21 July 2021) was an Irish politician who served as Minister for Industry and Commerce from 1977 to 1981 and 1989 to 1992, Leader of the Progressive Democrats from 1985 to 1993, Minister for Trade, ...
, a former senior minister in Fianna Fáil governments under Jack Lynch and
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 ...
. O'Malley was a strong opponent of Haughey and was involved in a number of leadership heaves against Haughey, who was popular and controversial in equal measure. O'Malley had lost the Fianna Fáil whip in the Dáil in 1984 because of his support for the
New Ireland Forum The New Ireland Forum was a forum in 1983–1984 at which Irish nationalist political parties discussed potential political developments that might alleviate the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The Forum was established by Garret FitzGerald, then T ...
report and was finally expelled from Fianna Fáil early in 1985 for "conduct unbecoming" a member when he refused to support Fianna Fáil's opposition to the introduction of contraception. O'Malley joined with Fianna Fáil members Mary Harney,
Bobby Molloy Robert Molloy (9 July 1936 – 2 October 2016) was an Irish politician who served as Minister of State for Housing and Urban Renewal and Minister of State to the Government from 1997 to 2002, Minister for Energy from 1989 to 1992, Minister for ...
and
Pearse Wyse Pearse Wyse (2 March 1923 – 28 April 2009) was an Irish politician, a long-serving member of Fianna Fáil who was later an early member of the Progressive Democrats. He was born in Cork in 1923, son of John Wyse (or Wise), pawnbroker's clerk ...
,
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 ...
TD
Michael Keating Michael, Mike or Mickey Keating may refer to: Politics * Michael Keating (Irish politician) (born 1946), Fine Gael then Progressive Democrats TD from Dublin * Michael Keating (Manitoba politician) * Michael Keating (political scientist) (born 1950) ...
and former Fine Gael activist Michael McDowell to set up the new party. The breakaways were dissatisfied with the policies of existing parties, which they viewed as being insufficiently liberal, both economically and on social issues such as divorce and contraception. In Ireland in 1985, when personal income above £7,300 per annum was taxed at 60 percent, the country's national debt was 104 percent of GDP, unemployment was 17.3 percent, the Progressive Democrats' liberal reformist agenda was considered especially radical. McDowell suggested a number of names for the party, including New Democrats, New Republic, National Party, Radical Party; Progressive Democrats was not among his suggestions. O'Malley declared that the party ought to be pro-enterprise, in favour of economic participation by all, liberal and pluralist, hostile to institutional dependency, favourable to incentives, pro self-reliance, deregulating where possible, anti-monopoly and pro-competition, low-key on nationalism, stressing "real republican" values rather than "nationalistic myths".


Electoral breakthrough and coalition

In the 1987 general election the new party won 14 seats and 11.9% of the vote, becoming the third-largest party in the Dáil. The Progressive Democrats formed the second-largest opposition party under difficult circumstances. The minority Fianna Fáil government introduced some of the economic reforms that the Progressive Democrats had recommended. Fianna Fáil was however largely supported by Fine Gael where the economy was concerned, and so the Progressive Democrats had difficulty being effective in opposition. After the 1989 election the party had only six seats but formed a coalition government with Fianna Fáil, with Charles Haughey as
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 ...
, which was the first time Fianna Fáil entered coalition. PD leader Desmond O'Malley served as Minister for Industry and Commerce. When a scandal broke surrounding
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 Tao ...
(deputy prime minister)
Brian Lenihan Snr Brian Patrick Lenihan (17 November 1930 – 1 November 1995) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Tánaiste from 1987 to 1990, Minister for Defence from 1989 to 1990, Minister for Agriculture from March 1982 to December 1982, Min ...
's role in pressuring President
Patrick Hillery Patrick John Hillery ( ga, Pádraig J. Ó hIrghile; 2 May 1923 – 12 April 2008) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as the sixth president of Ireland from December 1976 to December 1990. He also served as vice-president of the Eur ...
not to allow then-Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald to dissolve the Dáil in 1982. The Progressive Democrats gave Haughey an ultimatum—unless Lenihan was sacked from cabinet, they would pull out of the coalition and support a no-confidence motion in the government. Haughey tried to force Lenihan to resign, and sacked him when he refused. Haughey was replaced in February 1992 by
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 O'Malley retained his cabinet post.


Harney leadership

After the collapse of Reynolds' first administration later in 1992, O'Malley retired from the leadership of the party. Following the 1992 general election, John Dardis (Agricultural Panel) and
Cathy Honan Catherine Honan (born 16 September 1951) is a former Progressive Democrats politician from County Laois in Ireland. She was a Senator from 1993 to 1997. An accountant before entering politics, she stood unsuccessfully as a Progressive Democra ...
(Industrial and Commercial Panel) were elected to
Seanad Éireann Seanad Éireann (, ; "Senate of Ireland") is the upper house of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (the lower house). It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its memb ...
as part of an election pact with their politically polar opposites Democratic Left. Mary Harney became the new leader after a bitter electoral contest with
Pat Cox Patrick Cox (born 28 November 1952) is a former Irish Fine Gael politician, journalist and television current affairs presenter who served as President of the European Parliament from 2002 to 2004 and Leader of the European Liberal Democrat a ...
who later left the party. Harney was the first woman to lead any of the major Irish political parties. Harney served as
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 Tao ...
(deputy prime minister) from May 1997 until September 2006 after a return to government in coalition with Fianna Fáil. In the 2002 general election the party defied expectations by doubling its Dáil seats to eight, although its share of the vote declined slightly to 4%. In total the Progressive Democrats participated in coalition governments four times, on each occasion with Fianna Fáil (1989–1992; 1997–2002; 2002–2007; 2007–2009), and also with the
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 f ...
from 2007 to 2009. In 2005 Michael McDowell publicly took a firmly anti-republican position and named Gerry Adams, Martin McGuinness and Martin Ferris as members of the IRA Army Council. The convention in Irish politics at this time was not to accuse Sinn Féin politicians of being members of the Army Council, in doing so McDowell broke with convention. He said that until the IRA disbanded Sinn Féin could not be involved in government, North or South.


McDowell leadership and demise

On 7 September 2006 Mary Harney announced that she was stepping down as leader of the Progressive Democrats. She expressed a wish to stay on as Minister for Health. On 10 September, Michael McDowell was elected unopposed as Party Leader, having been nominated by
Tom Parlon Tom Parlon (born 19 August 1953) is a former Irish Progressive Democrats politician. He was a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Laois–Offaly constituency from 2002 to 2007 and was also the Minister of State at the Department of Finance with special r ...
and that nomination being seconded by
Liz O'Donnell Liz O'Donnell (born 1 July 1956) is a former Irish Progressive Democrats politician, who represented Dublin South as a Teachta Dála (TD) from 1992 to 2007. Early and personal life O'Donnell was born in Dublin in 1956, where her father worked f ...
. Liz O'Donnell became Deputy Leader and Tom Parlon became Party President. The 2007 general election was a disastrous one for the party. The Progressive Democrats lost six of their eight seats in the 166-seat Dáil. Among those to lose their seats were party leader Michael McDowell, deputy leader Liz O'Donnell and party president Tom Parlon. McDowell retired from public life after he lost his seat, and Mary Harney was asked by the party chairman to resume the role of party leader. The following month, Tom Parlon announced that he was also leaving public life and would take up the position of Director General of the Irish Construction Industry Federation. A committee headed by former Senator John Dardis recommended in September 2007 that the role of leader be taken on by a senator or councillor (although the party rules then required that the position must be held by a TD). A meeting of the party's General Council on 16 February 2008 changed the rules to allow any senator, councillor or any party member with the support of 20 other members to stand for the party's leadership and on 17 April, Senator
Ciarán Cannon Ciarán Cannon (born 19 September 1965) is an Irish Fine Gael politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Galway East constituency since 2011. He previously served as a senator for the Progressive Democrats and was the last elected lea ...
was elected leader, defeating fellow Senator
Fiona O'Malley Fiona O'Malley (born 19 January 1968) is a former Irish politician who served as a Senator from 2007 to 2011, after being nominated by the Taoiseach. She served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dún Laoghaire constituency from 2002 to 2007. Po ...
. The party's two remaining TDs,
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 ...
and
Noel Grealish Noel Grealish (born 16 December 1965) is an Irish Independent politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Galway West constituency since the 2002 general election. Political career He is from the Gaeltacht region of Carnmore, near G ...
, entered into coalition government 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- ...
and the
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 f ...
in the 30th Dáil. The party never recovered from this electoral collapse. On 8 November 2008, with all parliamentary members and founder Desmond O'Malley united in the opinion that the party was no longer politically viable, delegates to a special conference in
Mullingar Mullingar ( ; ) is the county town of County Westmeath in Ireland. It is the third most populous town in the Midland Region, with a population of 20,928 in the 2016 census. The Counties of Meath and Westmeath Act 1543 proclaimed Westmeat ...
voted by 201 votes to 161 to bring the Progressive Democrats to an end. In January 2009 the party was still operating and in receipt of state funding, including a Party Leader's Allowance paid to Minister Mary Harney, but had ceased to receive funding by the following June. In March 2009, Noel Grealish became caretaker leader after Cannon's decision to join
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 ...
, and he retained the role for the remaining months of the party's existence. The archives of the Progressive Democrats party were presented to
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 ...
on 10 June 2009. At least 20 former Progressive Democrats councillors won seats on county, city and town councils at the 2009 local elections. Some were elected as
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 ...
candidates, some as
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 others as independents.


Later events

At the 2011 general election 11 former Progressive Democrats members stood as candidates for the Dáil in a country-wide spread of constituencies. Subsequently, three former PD members were elected.
Mary Mitchell O'Connor Mary Mitchell O'Connor (born 10 June 1959) is a former Irish Fine Gael politician who served as a Minister of State from 2017 to 2020 and Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation from 2016 to 2017. She served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the ...
(PD Councillor 2004–08) was elected in
Dún Laoghaire Dún Laoghaire ( , ) is a suburban coastal town in Dublin in Ireland. It is the administrative centre of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown. The town was built following the 1816 legislation that allowed the building of a major port to serve Dubli ...
for Fine Gael,
Ciarán Cannon Ciarán Cannon (born 19 September 1965) is an Irish Fine Gael politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Galway East constituency since 2011. He previously served as a senator for the Progressive Democrats and was the last elected lea ...
(PD Senator 2007–09 / party leader 2008–09) was elected in Galway East for the same party, while
Noel Grealish Noel Grealish (born 16 December 1965) is an Irish Independent politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Galway West constituency since the 2002 general election. Political career He is from the Gaeltacht region of Carnmore, near G ...
(PD TD 2002–09 / caretaker party leader 2009) was re-elected as an independent TD for Galway West. Several ex-PD members stood for election to Seanad Éireann in 2011. The only successful candidature was that of Councillor Cait Keane (FG), who had served on
South Dublin County Council South Dublin County Council ( ga, Comhairle Contae Átha Cliath Theas) is the authority responsible for local government in the county of South Dublin, Ireland. It is one of three local authorities created by the Local Government (Dublin) Act ...
for the PDs between 1991 and 2008, and had stood for election in the Dublin South-Central constituency for the PDs in 1992, 1994 and 1997.


Ideology and policies

The Progressive Democrats were described as conservative-liberal,
liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...
, and
classical liberal Classical liberalism is a political tradition and a branch of liberalism that advocates free market and laissez-faire economics; civil liberties under the rule of law with especial emphasis on individual autonomy, limited government, econom ...
. The party's economic policies were based on
economic liberalism Economic liberalism is a political and economic ideology that supports a market economy based on individualism and private property in the means of production. Adam Smith is considered one of the primary initial writers on economic liberalism ...
. They supported the freedom of private enterprise and the lowering of taxes. They generally favoured privatisation; for example, they supported the privatisation of the previously state-owned airline
Aer Lingus Aer Lingus ( ; an anglicisation of the Irish , meaning "air fleet" compare Welsh 'llynges awyr') is the flag carrier of Ireland. Founded by the Irish Government, it was privatised between 2006 and 2015 and it is now a wholly owned subsidiary ...
and communications company
Telecom Éireann Telecom Éireann (; meaning "Telecommunications of Ireland") was an Irish state-owned telecommunications company that operated from 1983 to 1999. Prior to then a telephone and postal service was provided by the Department of Posts and Telegraph ...
. They were also part of the break-up of airports company
Aer Rianta DAA (styled "daa"), previously Dublin Airport Authority, is a commercial semi-state airport company in Ireland. The company owns and operates Dublin Airport and Cork Airport. Its other subsidiaries include the travel retail business Aer Rianta ...
and unsuccessfully lobbied for a private, competing second terminal in
Dublin Airport Dublin Airport (Irish language, Irish: ''Aerfort Bhaile Átha Cliath'') is an international airport serving Dublin, Ireland. It is operated by DAA (Irish company), DAA (formerly Dublin Airport Authority). The airport is located in Collinsto ...
. As acting PD leader and
Minister for Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental health. Coun ...
, Mary Harney was involved in the controversial extension of private-sector influence in health care. She pursued a policy of co-location of private hospitals on public hospital grounds and is seen as sympathetic to the privatisation of
health insurance Health insurance or medical insurance (also known as medical aid in South Africa) is a type of insurance that covers the whole or a part of the risk of a person incurring medical expenses. As with other types of insurance, risk is shared among ma ...
. However, they opposed their coalition partner's plans to privatise airports company
Aer Rianta DAA (styled "daa"), previously Dublin Airport Authority, is a commercial semi-state airport company in Ireland. The company owns and operates Dublin Airport and Cork Airport. Its other subsidiaries include the travel retail business Aer Rianta ...
on the grounds that a private monopoly would be worse than a public monopoly. The party was a strong supporter of low taxation. As the
Economic and Social Research Institute The Economic and Social Research Institute is an Irish research institute founded in 1960 to provide evidence-based research used to inform public policy debate and decision-making. The research of the institute focuses on the areas of sustaina ...
(ESRI) stated in 2002: "On balance, budgets over the past 10 to 20 years have been more favourable to high income groups than low income groups, but particularly so during periods of high growth". While the party was in government since 1997, the lower rate of
income tax An income tax is a tax imposed on individuals or entities (taxpayers) in respect of the income or profits earned by them (commonly called taxable income). Income tax generally is computed as the product of a tax rate times the taxable income. Tax ...
fell from 26% to 20% and the upper rate from 48% to 41%. They supported low
corporation tax A corporate tax, also called corporation tax or company tax, is a direct tax imposed on the income or capital of corporations or analogous legal entities. Many countries impose such taxes at the national level, and a similar tax may be imposed a ...
because they believe it encouraged business growth and enabled private enterprise to be rewarded. The party often claimed these policies were in part responsible for the "
Celtic Tiger The "Celtic Tiger" ( ga, An Tíogar Ceilteach) is a term referring to the economy of Ireland from the mid-1990s to the late 2000s, a period of rapid real economic growth fuelled by foreign direct investment. The boom was dampened by a subseque ...
" economy. Dermot McAleese,
emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...
professor of economics at
Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...
, says that the emergence of the Progressive Democrats in 1985 may have had a more positive influence on the economy than some recognise. He argues the Irish low-tax, pro-business economy is based in large part on Progressive Democrat policies. "They proved that there was a constituency for this, and they gave the intellectual power to it." The party leaders rejected the idea that they are ruled by ideology alone. Former party leader Michael McDowell has said that he sees
liberalism Liberalism is a political and moral philosophy based on the rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality and equality before the law."political rationalism, hostility to autocracy, cultural distaste for c ...
as not being on the left-right spectrum as it is a mix of the ideals of both. Mary Harney, on becoming health minister said "I don't get my politics from any ideology, I get it from my experience and common sense". Yet Harney was a controversial minister who attempted to extend private influence in the health service and McDowell's campaign in the
general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...
included particularly strong attacks on Irish
left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...
parties. Despite having in its ranks the
openly gay Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBT people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. Framed and debated as a privacy issue, coming out of ...
Colm O'Gorman Colm O'Gorman (born 15 July 1966) is the executive director of Amnesty International Ireland. He is founder and former director of One in Four. He is a survivor of clerical sexual abuse, and first came to public attention by speaking out agai ...
, the Progressive Democrats did not support
same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...
. Instead, they claimed to propose legislating for
civil union A civil union (also known as a civil partnership) is a legally recognized arrangement similar to marriage, created primarily as a means to provide recognition in law for same-sex couples. Civil unions grant some or all of the rights of marriage ...
; however attempts by the Labour Party to legislate for civil unions in the previous Dáil had been forestalled by PD Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform Michael McDowell, due to his insistence that non-sex relationships be recognised too. The Progressive Democrats again voted down the same bill in the current Dáil. Both Progressive Democrats and other commentators have suggested that the party had a greater influence on government policy since 1997 than might be expected from its size. This belief appears to have some basis – as of September 2004 the party controlled two of the most important cabinet positions (
Justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...
and
Health Health, according to the World Health Organization, is "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity".World Health Organization. (2006)''Constitution of the World Health Organiza ...
), despite having less than one-tenth of the seats of its coalition partner Fianna Fáil. In a 2000 speech to the
American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. Founded in 1878, the ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of acad ...
, the then party leader Mary Harney appeared to express a desire that Ireland become "closer to Boston than Berlin", adopting US free-market models for economic development, health, education, and other services rather than European Continental models because she believed that the continental countries (such as
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
and
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
), while having more equality had bad economies and high unemployment. However, in the midst of the ongoing Irish financial crisis, many opponents began to question the legacy of the Progressive Democrats. In a review of the Department of Finance Robert Wright, a Canadian economist, singled out the policies of the PD's and
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- ...
's 2002 election manifestos as contributing significantly to the 2008 property market crash.


Leadership history


Leader


Deputy leader

*
Michael Keating Michael, Mike or Mickey Keating may refer to: Politics * Michael Keating (Irish politician) (born 1946), Fine Gael then Progressive Democrats TD from Dublin * Michael Keating (Manitoba politician) * Michael Keating (political scientist) (born 1950) ...
(1986–1989) *
Pearse Wyse Pearse Wyse (2 March 1923 – 28 April 2009) was an Irish politician, a long-serving member of Fianna Fáil who was later an early member of the Progressive Democrats. He was born in Cork in 1923, son of John Wyse (or Wise), pawnbroker's clerk ...
(1989–1992) *
Pat Cox Patrick Cox (born 28 November 1952) is a former Irish Fine Gael politician, journalist and television current affairs presenter who served as President of the European Parliament from 2002 to 2004 and Leader of the European Liberal Democrat a ...
(1992–1994) *
Liz O'Donnell Liz O'Donnell (born 1 July 1956) is a former Irish Progressive Democrats politician, who represented Dublin South as a Teachta Dála (TD) from 1992 to 2007. Early and personal life O'Donnell was born in Dublin in 1956, where her father worked f ...
(2006–2007) *
Noel Grealish Noel Grealish (born 16 December 1965) is an Irish Independent politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Galway West constituency since the 2002 general election. Political career He is from the Gaeltacht region of Carnmore, near G ...
(2007–2009)


President

* Michael McDowell (2002–2006) *
Tom Parlon Tom Parlon (born 19 August 1953) is a former Irish Progressive Democrats politician. He was a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Laois–Offaly constituency from 2002 to 2007 and was also the Minister of State at the Department of Finance with special r ...
(2006–2007)


General election results


See also

* :Progressive Democrats politicians *
Young Progressive Democrats The Young Progressive Democrats were the youth wing of the Irish political party, the Progressive Democrats. Weakened after the party's poor showing in the 1997 elections, they were completely reformed on a national basis after the 2002 general ...


Notes


External links


Progressive Democrats website – from the Wayback machine – 1 July 2007
{{Authority control Political parties established in 1985 Political parties disestablished in 2009 Classical liberal parties Defunct liberal political parties Defunct political parties in the Republic of Ireland 2009 disestablishments in Ireland 1985 establishments in Ireland