A Teachta Dála ( , ;
plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
, 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 Parliament'' (MP) or ''
Member of Congress'' used in other countries. The official translation of the term is "Deputy to the Dáil",
although a more literal translation is "Assembly Delegate".
Overview
For electoral purposes, the
Republic of Ireland
Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 Counties of Ireland, counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern ...
is divided into areas known as
constituencies
An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other polity ...
, each of which elects three, four, or five TDs. Under the
Constitution
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed.
When these princ ...
, every 20,000 to 30,000 people must be represented by at least one TD.
[ A candidate to become a TD must be an Irish citizen and over 21 years of age.][
Until the 31st Dáil (2011–2016), the number of TDs had increased to 166. The 2016 general election elected 158 TDs, a reduction of 8, pursuant to the passage of the Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Act 2013. 159 TDs were elected to the 33rd Dáil at the 2020 general election which was held on 8 February. As the Ceann Comhairle is automatically returned, there were 160 members of the 33rd Dáil when it convened on 20 February 2020.
]
History
The term was first used to describe those Irish parliamentarians who were elected at the 1918 general election, and who, rather than attending the British House of Commons at Westminster
Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster.
The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, B ...
, to which they had been elected, assembled instead in the Mansion House in Dublin on 21 January 1919 to create a new Irish parliament: the First Dáil
The First Dáil ( ga, An Chéad Dáil) was Dáil Éireann as it convened from 1919 to 1921. It was the first meeting of the unicameral parliament of the revolutionary Irish Republic. In the December 1918 election to the Parliament of the United ...
Éireann. Initially, the term 'Feisire Dáil Eireann' (F.D.E.) was mooted, but 'Teachta' was used from the first meeting. The term continued to be used after this First Dáil and was used to refer to later members of the Irish Republic
The Irish Republic ( ga, Poblacht na hÉireann or ) was an unrecognised revolutionary state that declared its independence from the United Kingdom in January 1919. The Republic claimed jurisdiction over the whole island of Ireland, but by ...
's single-chamber Dáil Éireann (or 'Assembly of Ireland') (1919–22), members of the Free State Dáil (1922–37), and of the modern Dáil Éireann.
Style
The initials "TD" are placed after the surname of the elected TD. For example, the current 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 ...
(head of government) is "Micheál Martin
Micheál Martin (; born 1 August 1960) is an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who is serving as Tánaiste, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Defence since December 2022. He served as Taoiseach from 2020 to 2022 and has been Leader of ...
, TD". The style
Style is a manner of doing or presenting things and may refer to:
* Architectural style, the features that make a building or structure historically identifiable
* Design, the process of creating something
* Fashion, a prevailing mode of clothing ...
used to refer to individual TDs during debates in Dáil Éireann is the member's surname preceded by ''Deputy'' ( ga, an Teachta): for example, "Deputy McDonald", ''"an Teachta Ní Dhomhnaill/Bhean Úi Dhomhnaill"'' or ''"an Teachta Ó Domhnaill"''
Salaries and expenses
The basic salary of a backbench TD is €105,271. Cabinet ministers
A cabinet is a body of high-ranking state officials, typically consisting of the executive branch's top leaders. Members of a cabinet are usually called cabinet ministers or secretaries. The function of a cabinet varies: in some countrie ...
and junior ministers receive additional allowances. Office-holders (opposition party leaders, whips, the Ceann Comhairle, and Leas-Cheann Comhairle) also receive additional allowances.
After controversy regarding alleged abuses of the Oireachtas expenses provisions, the system was simplified in 2009 and 2010 into two allowances:
See also
* Members of the 1st Dáil
* Records of members of the Oireachtas
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Teachta Dala
Politics of the Republic of Ireland