Thomas W. Enright (born 26 July 1940) is an Irish 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 � ...

politician who 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 Laois–Offaly constituency from 1969 to 1992 and 1997 to 2002. He also served as a

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

for the

Administrative Panel The Administrative Panel () is one of five vocational panels which together elect 43 of the 60 members of Seanad Éireann, the upper house of the Oireachtas (the legislature of Ireland). The Administrative Panel elects seven senators. Election ...

from 1992 to 1997.

Early life and education

Enright was born in

Shinrone Shinrone () is a village in County Offaly, Ireland. It is in the southernmost part of the county, close to the border with County Tipperary. It lies at the junction of the R491 regional road between Nenagh and Roscrea with the R492 to Sharavo ...

County Offaly County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in hono ...

, in 1940. He was educated at the Cistercian College,

Roscrea Roscrea () is a market town in County Tipperary, Ireland, which in 2016 had a population of 5,446. Roscrea is one of the oldest towns in Ireland, having developed around the 7th century monastery of Saint Crónán of Roscrea, parts of which rem ...

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 ...

and the Incorporated

Law Society of Ireland The Law Society of Ireland ( ga, Dlí-Chumann na hÉireann) is a professional body established on 24 June 1830 and is the educational, representative and regulatory body of the solicitors' profession in Ireland. As of 2020, the Law Society had ...

Political career

He practised as a solicitor before becoming involved in politics in 1967 as a member of

Offaly County Council Offaly County Council ( ga, Comhairle Chontae Uíbh Fhailí) is the authority responsible for Local government in the Republic of Ireland, local government in County Offaly, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by t ...

for the Birr

local electoral area A local electoral area (LEA; ga, Toghlimistéir Áitiúil) is an electoral area for elections to local authorities in Ireland. All elections use the single transferable vote. The Republic of Ireland is divided into 166 LEAs, with an average po ...

. Enright was first 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 ...

as a Fine Gael TD for the Laois–Offaly constituency at the 1969 general election. He was subsequently appointed

spokesperson on Tourism (1977–1979) and Consumer Affairs (1979–1981). Enright lost his Dáil seat at the 1992 general election to Pat Gallagher as part of the swing to the Labour Party in that election. He was then elected to the 20th Seanad, where he served from 1993 to 1997. He regained his Dáil seat at the 1997 general election and retired at the 2002 general election. He was succeeded by his daughter

Olwyn Enright Olwyn Enright (born 1 July 1974) is a former Irish Fine Gael politician who served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Laois–Offaly constituency from 2002 to 2011. Early life and education Born in Birr, County Offaly, she is the daughter of Tom ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Enright, Tom 1940 births Living people Fine Gael TDs Local councillors in County Offaly Members of the 20th Seanad Members of the 19th Dáil Members of the 20th Dáil Members of the 21st Dáil Members of the 22nd Dáil Members of the 23rd Dáil Members of the 24th Dáil Members of the 25th Dáil Members of the 26th Dáil Members of the 28th Dáil Politicians from County Offaly People educated at Cistercian College, Roscrea Alumni of University College Dublin Fine Gael senators

Early life and education

Political career

See also

References