Máire Geoghegan-Quinn

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Máire Geoghegan-Quinn (born September 5, 1950) is a former Irish politician. She served as a Fianna Fáil Teachta Dála (TD) for Galway West between 1975 and 1997.

Máire Geoghegan-Quinn was born in Carna, County Galway in September 1950. She was educated at Colaiste Mhuire, Tur Mhic Eadaigh in County Mayo and at Carysfort Training College in Blackrock from where she qualified as a teacher. Her father, Johnny Geoghegan, was Fianna Fáil TD for Galway West from 1954 until his death in 1975. His daughter successfully contested the subsequent by-election and was successful. Between 1977 and 1979 she worked as Parliamentary Secretary at the Department of Industry, Commerce and Energy.

Geoghegan-Quinn supported Charles Haughey in the 1979 Fianna Fáil leadership contest, she was subsequently appointed to the then Junior Cabinet post of Minister for the Gaeltacht. Thus, she became the first woman to hold an Irish cabinet post since the foundation of the state in 1922, although Countess Markiewicz was Minister for Labour in 1919, in the 1st Dáil. In 1981 Labour's Eileen Desmond became the first woman to hold a senior post.

In 1982 she was appointed Minister of State at the Department of Education. Her tenure was short, because the 23rd Dáil lasted only 279 days, and a Fine Gael-Labour coalition was elected at the November 1982 general election.

When Fianna Fáil returned to power after the 1987 general election, Geoghegan-Quinn became Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach. She resigned in 1991 in opposition to Charles Haughey's leadership of the party. The following year Albert Reynolds, the man she now backed for the leadership, became Taoiseach and Fianna Fáil leader. Geoghegan-Quinn was appointed Minister for Tourism, Transport and Communications for her loyalty to Reynolds. In 1993 she became Minister for Justice, introducing substantial law reform legislation.

Widely tipped to be the first female Taoiseach, she announced that she would challenge Bertie Ahern for the position when Reynolds retired. However on the day of the vote she withdrew from the contest.

In 1997 she retired from politics completely. She became a non-executive director of Aer Lingus and a journalist. In 1999 she was appointed to the European Court of Auditors replacing former TD Barry Desmond. She was appointed for a second term at the Court of Auditors in March 2006.

A Case of Mistaken Identity

Geoghegan-Quinn, who lives in Paris, was incorrectly indentified by Le Monde as the former lover the late Charles Haughey in the course of a tribute to Haughey following his death on 13 June 2006. A most unlikely occurrence from the perspective of informed observers; Haughey was 25 years older than Geoghegan-Quinn and the rapport between the two politicians was less than warm for many years!

An Irish newspaper columnist, Terry Keane, identified herself several years previously on the RTE Late Late Show as his lover of 27 years and caused considerable distress to Haughey's wife Maureen Haughey by her public disclosure. She described Haughey, from time to time, as Sweetie in her newspaper column. Despite Keane's regrets at the time for the hurt caused, she has decided to sell the story of her memories of the relationship with Haughey, including intimate private photographs, for €25,000 to the newspaper, Ireland on Sunday - just 5 days after her lovers demise.

Ministerial Career

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This page incorporates information from the [Oireachtas Members Database]

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