Tánaiste

Tánaiste of Ireland
Incumbent Eamon Gilmore since 9 March 2011
Appointer	President of Ireland on the nomination of the Taoiseach
Inaugural holder	Seán T. O'Kelly[1]
Formation	29 December 1937[1]
Salary	€184,405[2]

The Tánaiste (Irish pronunciation: [ˈt̪ˠaːnəʃtʲə])^[3] is the deputy prime minister of Ireland. The current Tánaiste is Eamon Gilmore, TD who was appointed on 9 March 2011.

Overview

Origins and etymology

Tánaiste was originally the Irish word for the heir of the chief (taoiseach) or king (rí), under the Gaelic system of tanistry. Before independence, the British Viceroy was sometimes referred to in the Irish language as An Tánaiste-Rí, literally 'the deputy king'.

Modern office

The office was created in the 1937 Constitution of Ireland, replacing the previous office of Vice-President of the Executive Council that had existed under the Free State constitution.

The Taoiseach (prime minister) nominates a member of the government to the position of Tánaiste and is appointed by the President. The Tánaiste acts in the place of the Taoiseach during his or her temporary absence, and, until a successor has been appointed, in the event of the Taoiseach's death or permanent incapacitation.^[4] The Tánaiste must be a member of Dáil Éireann,^[5] and is ex-officio a member of the Council of State. The Tánaiste would usually chair meetings of the government if the Taoiseach is absent or take questions on his behalf in the Dáil or Seanad.

Aside from these duties, the title is largely honorific in practice. The constitution does not give the Tánaiste specific powers other than deputising for the Taoiseach. Under a coalition government the position is commonly held by the leader of the second-largest party who in this situation is free to head any department he or she wants. Recent office-holders, such as Michael McDowell, Mary Harney and Dick Spring, have been leaders of smaller parties. The current Tánaiste, Eamon Gilmore, is the leader of second largest party in the Dáil as part of a coalition government.

List of office-holders

Name	Picture	Entered office	Left office	Party		Other ministerial offices held while in post	Subsequent higher offices held
Seán T. O'Kelly		29 December 1937	14 June 1945		Fianna Fáil	Minister for Local Government and Public Health (1937–39) Minister for Education (1939) Minister for Finance (1939–45)	President of Ireland (1945–59)
Seán Lemass (1st term of 3)		14 June 1945	18 February 1948		Fianna Fáil	Minister for Supplies (1945) Minister for Industry and Commerce (1945–48)	Taoiseach (1959–66)
William Norton (1st term of 2)		18 February 1948	13 June 1951		Labour Party	Minister for Social Welfare (1948–51)
Seán Lemass (2nd term of 3)		13 June 1951	2 June 1954		Fianna Fáil	Minister for Industry and Commerce (1951–54)	Taoiseach (1959–66)
William Norton (2nd term of 2)		2 June 1954	20 March 1957		Labour Party	Minister for Industry and Commerce (1954–57)
Seán Lemass (3rd term of 3)		20 March 1957	23 June 1959		Fianna Fáil	Minister for Industry and Commerce (1957–59)	Taoiseach (1959–66)
Seán MacEntee		23 June 1959	21 April 1965		Fianna Fáil	Minister for Health (1959–65)
Frank Aiken		21 April 1965	2 July 1969		Fianna Fáil	Minister for External Affairs (1965–69)
Erskine H. Childers		2 July 1969	14 March 1973		Fianna Fáil	Minister for Health (1969–73)	President of Ireland (1973–74)
Brendan Corish		14 March 1973	5 July 1977		Labour Party	Minister for Health (1973–77)
George Colley		5 July 1977	30 June 1981		Fianna Fáil	Minister for Finance (1977–79) Minister for Tourism and Transport (1979–80) Minister for Energy (1980–81)
Michael O'Leary		30 June 1981	9 March 1982		Labour Party	Minister for Energy (1981–82)
Ray MacSharry		9 March 1982	14 December 1982		Fianna Fáil	Minister for Finance (1982)
Dick Spring (1st term of 3)		14 December 1982	20 January 1987		Labour Party	Minister for the Environment (1982–83) Minister for Energy (1983–87)
Peter Barry		20 January 1987	10 March 1987		Fine Gael	Minister for Foreign Affairs (1987)
Brian Lenihan		10 March 1987	31 October 1990		Fianna Fáil	Minister for Foreign Affairs (1987–89) Minister for Defence (1989–90)
John Wilson		13 November 1990	12 January 1993		Fianna Fáil	Minister for the Marine (1990–1992) Minister for Defence (1992–93)
Dick Spring (2nd term of 3)		12 January 1993	17 November 1994		Labour Party	Minister for Foreign Affairs (1993–94)
Bertie Ahern		19 November 1994	15 December 1994		Fianna Fáil	Minister for Finance (1994)	Taoiseach (1997–2008)
Dick Spring (3rd term of 3)		15 December 1994	26 June 1997		Labour Party	Minister for Foreign Affairs (1994–97)
Mary Harney		26 June 1997	13 September 2006		Progressive Democrats	Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (1997–2004) Minister for Health and Children (2004–06)
Michael McDowell		13 September 2006	14 June 2007		Progressive Democrats	Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (2002–07)
Brian Cowen		14 June 2007	7 May 2008		Fianna Fáil	Minister for Finance (2007–08)	Taoiseach (2008–2011)
Mary Coughlan		7 May 2008	9 March 2011		Fianna Fáil	Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (2008–10) Minister for Education and Skills (2010–11) Minister for Health and Children (2011)
Eamon Gilmore		9 March 2011	Incumbent		Labour Party	Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade (2011–present)

See also

• Tanistry

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Before the enactment of the 1937 Constitution of Ireland, the deputy head of government was referred to as the Vice-President of the Executive Council.
2. ^ "Cabinet decides to cut pay for Ministers". RTÉ News. 10 March 2011. http://www.rte.ie/news/2011/0310/politics.html. Retrieved 10 March 2011. 
3. ^ Plural: Tánaistí (Irish pronunciation: [ˈt̪ˠaːnəʃtʲiː]). In English, the singular form "An Tánaiste" ([ən̪ ˈt̪ˠaːnəʃtʲə]) (using the Irish-language definite article "an" for "the") may also be used instead of The Tánaiste.
4. ^ Article 28.6.2° and 28.6.3° of the Constitution of Ireland. [1]
5. ^ Article 28.7.1° of the Constitution of Ireland.