Seán Dublin Bay Rockall Loftus (1 November 1927 – 10 July 2010) was an Irish environmentalist,
barrister
A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...
and politician who drew attention to his campaign issues by changing his name. He was often known as "Dublin Bay Loftus". He was a member of
Dublin City Council
Dublin City Council () is the Local government in the Republic of Ireland, local authority of the city of Dublin in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. As a city council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. Until 2001, the authority was k ...
for 25 years, an
alderman
An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law with similar officials existing in the Netherlands (wethouder) and Belgium (schepen). The term may be titular, denotin ...
for much of that time, and a member of the council's Planning and Development Committee. Loftus is often credited as being one of the first advocates for environmentalism in Irish politics, with former
Green Party
A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice.
Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...
leader
John Gormley stating that Loftus "led the way even before the Green Party came into existence. Sean never wavered in his pursuit of the highest environmental ideals". Besides his environmentalist views, Loftus subscribed to the label of
Christian Democrat
Christian democracy is an ideology inspired by Christian ethics#Politics, Christian social teaching to respond to the challenges of contemporary society and politics.
Christian democracy has drawn mainly from Catholic social teaching and neo ...
and was socially conservative, opposing moves 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 nomination by Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legisl ...
Garret FitzGerald to liberalise Irish laws around divorce,
contraceptives
Birth control, also known as contraception, anticonception, and fertility control, is the use of methods or devices to prevent pregnancy. Birth control has been used since ancient times, but effective and safe methods of birth control only be ...
, and abortion.
Background
Born Seán Daniel Loftus in Dublin
Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...
in 1927, he was the eldest of seven siblings. He attended Coláiste Mhuire primary school on Parnell Square
Parnell Square () is a Georgian square sited at the northern end of O'Connell Street in the city of Dublin, Ireland. It is in the city's D01 postal district.
History
Formerly named ''Ruthland Square'', it was renamed after Charles Stewart ...
and received his secondary education at Catholic University School
Catholic University School ''(C.U.S.)'' is a private (voluntary) secondary school for boys in Dublin, Ireland. The school was founded in 1867 by Bartholomew Woodlock as a preparatory school for the Catholic University of Ireland, the predeces ...
. His father was a doctor and Loftus attended medical school at University College Dublin
University College Dublin (), commonly referred to as UCD, is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 38,417 students, it is Ireland's largest ...
but did not enjoy it, leaving before graduating. He moved to England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
in the late 1940s, where he worked as a builder. After six years, he returned to Ireland to attend King's Inns
The Honorable Society of King's Inns () is the "Inn of Court" for the Bar of Ireland. Established in 1541, King's Inns is Ireland's oldest school of law and one of Ireland's significant historical environments.
The Benchers of King's Inns aw ...
, qualifying as a barrister
A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...
. He returned to England for several years before moving to the United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, where he worked and lectured. He moved back to Ireland in 1961. Loftus specialised in town planning law, lecturing in law at Bolton Street College of Technology (later the Dublin Institute of Technology
Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT, ) was a major third-level institution in Dublin, Ireland. On 1 January 2019 DIT was dissolved and its functions were transferred to the Technological University Dublin, as TU Dublin City Campus. The insti ...
). A resident of Clontarf, he campaigned for the sustainable development of Dublin Bay.[ Loftus was a devout Catholic. While he lived in the United States, he was an active member of the ]Montclair, New Jersey
Montclair is a Township (New Jersey), township in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Situated on the cliffs of the Watchung Mountains, Montclair is a commercial and cultural hub of North Jersey and a diverse ...
branch of an Irish-American Catholic fraternal organisation, the Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH). He was guest of honor at the 1960 AOH National Convention by invitation of the National President, Jeremiah J. O’Callaghan. Loftus moved back to Ireland in 1961.
Political career
During his time in America, Loftus met Eduardo Frei Montalva
Eduardo Nicanor Frei Montalva (; 16 January 1911 – 22 January 1982) was a Chileans, Chilean political leader. In his long political career, he was Minister of Public Works, president of his Christian Democratic Party (Chile), Christia ...
, who later became the leader of the Christian Democratic Party of Chile and President of Chile
The president of Chile (), officially the president of the Republic of Chile (), is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Chile. The president is responsible for both Government of Chile, government administration and s ...
. The meeting with Montalva, who Loftus continued to admire afterwards, influenced Loftus to subscribe to the idea of Christian Democracy
Christian democracy is an ideology inspired by Christian social teaching to respond to the challenges of contemporary society and politics.
Christian democracy has drawn mainly from Catholic social teaching and neo-scholasticism, as well ...
with corporatist influences. Due to this influence, during the late 1950s Loftus flirted with the hard-right "National Action" organisation, a group that advocated for "vocationalism", the localised Irish term for corporatism.[
In 1961, Loftus founded the Christian Democrat Party of Ireland and stood for election to ]Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann ( ; , ) is the lower house and principal chamber of the Oireachtas, which also includes the president of Ireland and a senate called Seanad Éireann.Article 15.1.2° of the Constitution of Ireland reads: "The Oireachtas shall co ...
at the 1961 general election in the Dublin North-East constituency, the first of sixteen attempts. He contested every general election from 1961 to 1997. Although the party would exist for two decades, the Christian Democrat Party of Ireland struggled to register themselves on Ireland's official register of political parties and fought numerous court cases to achieve this. However, they were unsuccessful and partially because of this, the party never became any grander than a nexus of Rockall supporters.
In 1972 the Dublin Port and Docks Board proposed the building of an oil refinery
An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial processes, industrial process Factory, plant where petroleum (crude oil) is transformed and refining, refined into products such as gasoline (petrol), diesel fuel, Bitumen, asphalt base, ...
in Dublin Bay. The plan was vigorously opposed by environmentalists, including Loftus, on the grounds that it posed a serious risk of pollution. Despite the motion having the support of larger political groups, such as Official Sinn Féin, the planned oil refinery was eventually rejected in 1976 thanks in part to Loftus bringing a bucket of polluted water from the bay to a public inquiry.[
At the 1973 general election, Loftus stood for election to the Dáil in the Dublin North-Central constituency as a Christian Democrat on the issue of Dublin Bay. Because the party was too small to be registered under the Electoral Act 1963, meaning Loftus would be listed as ' Non-Party', he changed his name by ]deed poll
A deed poll (plural: deeds poll) is a legal document binding on a single person or several persons acting jointly to express an intention or create an obligation. It is a deed, and not a contract, because it binds only one party.
Etymology
Th ...
to "Seán D. Christian Democrat Dublin Bay Loftus" in order that his political affiliation and campaign issue would appear on the ballot paper
A ballot is a device used to cast votes in an election and may be found as a piece of paper or a small ball used in voting. It was originally a small ball (see blackballing) used to record decisions made by voters in Italy around the 16th centu ...
.[ Although not elected, he succeeded in highlighting the issue and the proposal was eventually turned down by the Minister for Local Government, James Tully. With the momentum from his campaign against the Dublin Bay oil refinery building, Loftus was elected to ]Dublin Corporation
Dublin Corporation (), known by generations of Dubliners simply as ''The Corpo'', is the former name of the city government and its administrative organisation in Dublin since the 1100s. Significantly re-structured in 1660–1661, even more si ...
in 1974.[
In the following years Loftus changed his name by deed poll several times more, to "Seán Dublin Bay Loftus", "Seán Dublin Bay Rockall Loftus" (as part of a campaign to press the Irish Government to make a territorial claim to the ]Rockall
Rockall () is a high, uninhabitable granite islet in the North Atlantic Ocean. It is west of Soay, St Kilda, Scotland; northwest of Tory Island, Ireland; and south of Iceland.
The nearest permanently inhabited place is North Uist, east in ...
islet off the coast of County Donegal
County Donegal ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county of the Republic of Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is the northernmost county of Ireland. The county mostly borders Northern Ireland, sharing only a small b ...
) and "Seán Alderman Dublin Bay Rockall Loftus", among others. It was under this last name that he was elected to the 22nd Dáil for the Dublin North-East constituency at the 1981 general election. This Dáil was short-lived, however, and he himself contributed to the end of his Dáil career when he voted against John Bruton
John Gerard Bruton (18 May 1947 – 6 February 2024) was an Irish Fine Gael politician who served as Taoiseach from 1994 to 1997 and Leader of Fine Gael from 1990 to 2001. He held cabinet positions between 1981 and 1987, including twice ...
's budget in January 1982.[ During the early 1980s, Loftus supported the ]Anti H-Block
Anti H-Block was the political label used in 1981 by supporters of the Irish republican hunger strike who were standing for election in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. "H-Block" was a metonym for the Maze Prison, within who ...
movement and opposed attempts by Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald to liberalise Irish laws, suggesting FitzGerald was attempting "to dechristianise the people's constitution".[ At the February 1982 general election he stood in two constituencies, Dublin North-East and Dublin North-Central, but failed to win a seat in either.][
Loftus continued to contest Dáil and ]European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two 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 ...
elections until 1997
Events January
* January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States.
* January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis.
* January 1 ...
.[ He remained on Dublin City Council, and served as ]Lord Mayor of Dublin
The Lord Mayor of Dublin () is the honorary title of the chairperson ( ) of Dublin City Council which is the local government body for the city of Dublin, the capital of Ireland. The incumbent, since December 2024, is Fine Gael councillor Emma ...
from 1995 to 1996.[
Loftus remained active as a member and honorary legal advisor of Dublin Bay Watch, and led opposition to the 2002 application by the Dublin Port Company to fill in of Dublin Bay. The application was rejected in June 2010 by the planning board, An Bord Pleanála, while Loftus was in hospital, having undergone brain surgery. Local councillor Gerry Breen said its rejection was a "fitting tribute" to Loftus.
]
Personal life
In 1962, Loftus married Úna Uí Lachtnáin, a home economics teacher from Cootehill, County Cavan
County Cavan ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is part of the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Cavan and is based on the hi ...
. They had 3 children. A committed Gaeilgeoir, she became heavily involved in Oireachtas na Gaeilge, and was elected President of Oireachtas na Gaeilge in 2011. Uí Lachtnáin also served several years as Chairperson of the Dublin City Community Forum and was a founding member of the Bull Island
Bull Island (), more properly North Bull Island (), is an island located in Dublin Bay in Ireland, about 5 km long and 800 m wide, lying roughly parallel to the shore off Clontarf, Dublin, Clontarf (including Dollymount), Raheny, Kilbarra ...
Action Group.
Death
Loftus died on 10 July 2010 at the Mater Private Hospital. His funeral mass took place at St. Gabriel's Roman Catholic Church in Dollymount and he was interred at St. Fintan's Cemetery, Sutton on 12 July 2010. His widow Úna Uí Lachtnáin died on 1 April 2014.
References
External links
''Seán D. Christian Democrat Dublin Bay Loftus''
RTÉ Archives, 23 February 1973.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Loftus, Sean Dublin Bay Rockall
1927 births
2010 deaths
Burials at St. Fintan's Cemetery, Sutton
Independent TDs
Irish Christian democrats
Irish barristers
Irish environmentalists
Lord mayors of Dublin
Members of the 22nd Dáil
Alumni of King's Inns
People educated at Catholic University School
Independent local councillors in the Republic of Ireland