Cabinet Reshuffle

Sparks

Ongoing. Watch it live here.

Moriarty

Got a list? I just missed it.

<edit>Noel Dempsey is in DCMNR, that's the one I caught</edit>

toffeeman

Mary Harney has taken the health portfolio while Brian Cowen moves to finance.

The new Foreign Affairs Minister is Dermot Ahern. Mary Hanafin has been given the education portfolio. Michéal Martin moves to the Department of Trade, Enterprise and Employment.

The further Cabinet changes are:


Communications, Marine, Natural Resources - Noel Dempsey
Social and Family Affairs - Seamus Brennan
Transport - Martin Cullen
Agriculture - Mary Coughlan
Defence - Willie O'Dea
Environment - Dick Roche

There are to be four new ministers of state; Sean Power, Batt O'Keeffe, Brendan Smith and Conor Lenihan. The new chief whip is Tom Kitt.

Mr Ahern has also announced that Minister of State Jim McDaid had resigned.

Sparks

Communications, Marine, Natural Resources - Noel Dempsey
Social and Family Affairs - Seamus Brennan
Transport - Martin Cullen
Agriculture - Mary Coughlan
Defence - Willie O'Dea
Environment - Dick Roche
Health: Mary Harney
Enterprise: Micheál Martin
Foreign Affairs: Dermot Ahern
The rest as before.

Four new ministers of state; Sean Power, Batt O'Keeffe, Brendan Smith and Conor Lenihan. The new chief whip is Tom Kitt.

Moriarty

http://www.breakingnews.ie/2004/09/29/story168744.html

The Taoiseach has new appointments to his reshuffled cabinet in the Dáil this afternoon, with three new cabinet members and the Tánaiste becoming Minister for Health.

The Taoiseach has named Tánaiste Mary Harney to the key role of Minister for Health and Children.

As expected, Brian Cowen has been named the new Minister for Finance. Dermot Ahern becomes Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Noel Dempsey has been moved from Education to the Communications portfolio. The new Minister for Education is Mary Hanafin.

Outgoing Minister for Health Micheál Martin has been moved to the Enterprise, Trade and Employment ministry.

Séamus Brennan has been transferred to Minister for Social and Family Affairs from the Department of Transport.

Martin Cullen replaces Séamus Brennan as Minister for Transport, having served as Minister for the Environment. Dick Roche is the new Minister for the Environment.

Mary Coughlan is the new Minister for Food and Agriculture. Previous minister Joe Walsh is retiring.

Meanwhile Limerick TD Willie O'Dea has been named the new Minister for Defence.

The outgoing ministers are Joe Walsh (retiring), Micheal Smyth, formerly Minister for Defence and Charlie McCreevy, who has become a European Commissioner.

The Taoiseach also said Sean Power, Batt O'Keeffe, Tony Kileen and Conor Lenihan would move from the backbenches and become Junior Ministers.

Tom Kitt is the new Government chief whip.

toffeeman

Jeesh I just said that!!

I don't think Dermot Ahern's promotion to Foreign Affairs was expected. Not by me anyways!

vinnyfitz

toffeeman wrote:

I don't think Dermot Ahern's promotion to Foreign Affairs was expected. Not by me anyways!

Well, it was always going to be him or John O'Donoghue.

seamus

The one change I really wanted to see, and he goes and leaves Nazi McDowell in Justice. :rolleyes:

daveirl

This post has been deleted.

vinnyfitz

RTE reports;
Jim McDaid has resigned as a Minister of State, and five new Ministers of State are to be appointed - Sean Power, Batt O'Keeffe, Tony Killeen, Brendan Smith and Conor Lenihan.

But, only 3 junior ministers have been sent up stairs - Willy, Dick and Mary Hanifin (with Kitt taking a half step up to replace Hanifin as chief whip).

So a second junior is going to have to get the bullet in the morning...or can Bertie just create an extra junior job?

narommy

vinnyfitz wrote:

...or can Bertie just create an extra junior job?

Yes he can, i don't know the specifics tho

PH01

Mary Coughlan - Agriculture and Food
Expected. You gotta give this portfolio to someone from the country. Mary was probably the only choice for this job.

John O'Donoghue - Arts, Sport and Tourism
Good ol' Zero lives to fight another day.

Noel Dempsey - Communications, Marine and Natural Resources
This is a demotion for Neol.

Eamonn O'Cuiv - Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs
Surprise, surprise.

Willie O'Dea - Defence
Had to put Willie somewhere and no better place than defence. Like what's worst that could happen? Stop US Army flights through Shannon?

Mary Hanafin - Education and Science
Big promotion for Mary - She doesn't have too many fans on Boardsie, but time will tell how well she does here.

Dick Roche - Environment, Heritage and Local Government
Good on ya Dick. Don't mess up your big promotion.

Brian Cowen - Finance
About to raid the cookie jar are we Brian? Your future leadership of the party will depend on how well you do here.

Dermot Ahern - Foreign Affairs
As predicted. Big jump for Dermot.

Mary Harney - Health and Children
Shock and Awe! Mary, are you sure you want to go in there?

Michael McDowell - Justice, Equality and Law Reform
NOBODY is going to take this baby away from Michael.

Seamus Brennan - Social and Family Affairs
You've had your time in front of the cameras Seamus. I'd say Tiny won't be happy here.

Michéal Martin - Enterprise, Trade and Employment
"PHEW, I thought I'd never get outta there!"

Martin Cullen - Transport
Martin must have friends in high places.

Tom Kitt - Chief Whip
Gawd Tom, what did you havve to do to get this cosy number?!

mike65

Martin Cullen - Transport Martin must have friends in high places

He must be thrilled when he got Environment he really wanted the transport part but then discovered it was hived off so he now has the job he really wants.

Woman as Agri minister! :eek: What will the mountiany men make of it?

Mike.

luckat

Hmmm... what a male cabinet... Brennan in Social Welfare! McDowell still in Justice!! Harney in Health, where she can privatise the hospitals!!! Ochón!

segadreamcast

"Brian Cowen - Finance
About to raid the cookie jar are we Brian? Your future leadership of the party will depend on how well you do here."

Indeed, indeed, this position is something of a double-edged sword for Mr. Cowen - the potential is there to gain the leadership of the party, yet, if he performs poorly, it will be an ominous note for his future role in politics.

Time will tell.

GuanYin

PH01 wrote:

Mary Hanafin - Education and Science
Big promotion for Mary - She doesn't have too many fans on Boardsie, but time will tell how well she does here.

I really dunno what to make of this one.

We really aren't big fans of Harney who has been about as two-faced as they come, but Hanafin is a toothless tiger. All the big institute openings are over (bar DIT's FOCUS) so I'm not sure what she's good for.

Seems to me that if they are really seeing Ireland as a future leader in technology and science they'd put someone better than puppet-girl in there.

Moriarty

Who knows, she may grow into it well. Then again, she may be a complete disaster. You'd imagine bertie wouldn't stick a dimwit in such an important department, but time will tell.

SkepticOne

syke wrote:

Seems to me that if they are really seeing Ireland as a future leader in technology and science they'd put someone better than puppet-girl in there.

I think she will do a reasonable job of promoting the image of Ireland as a technology leader.

thejollyrodger

i see they got rid of Smith !! About time, he should have been kicked out a couple of years ago.

Alun

PH01 wrote:

Mary Harney - Health and Children
Shock and Awe! Mary, are you sure you want to go in there?

I'm looking forward to the reaction in the Dail when she stands up and announces the measures she's going to take to battle the current worrying increase in obesity

ArthurDent

SkepticOne wrote:

I think she will do a reasonable job of promoting the image of Ireland as a technology leader.

Is that not more the role of the minister of DETE? Mary Harney ceratinly filled it in the last cabinet and even apointed Barry McSweeny as Chief Scientific Advisor to govt
http://www.universityscience.ie/pages/news/july04/Tanaiste_appointment.htm

jlang

What about Brian Lenihan? He was rumoured to be up for Chief Whip so I'm surprised not to see him get at least a Junior post. I wonder if geographical reasons were to blame?

SkepticOne

ArthurDent wrote:

Is that note more the role of the minister of DETE? Mary Harney ceratinly filled it in the last cabinet and even apointed Barry McSweeny as Chief Scientific Advisor to govt
http://www.universityscience.ie/pages/news/july04/Tanaiste_appointment.htm

Hmmm yes, although I would see Hanafin more of a promoter of rather than someone who makes changes so it is possible that she will take on some of the promotional work. Maybe this is just my perception. It will be interesting to see what emerges.

ArthurDent

SkepticOne wrote:

Hmmm yes, although I would see Hanafin more of a promoter of rather than someone who makes changes so it is possible that she will take on some of the promotional work. Maybe this is just my perception. It will be interesting to see what emerges.

Tend to agree with you - I reckon Hanafin would be a bit of a poster child for the "knowledge economy" certainly a bit more dynamic than Martin - it will be interesting to see who grabs the limelight

Typedef

Moriarty wrote:

Who knows, she may grow into it well. Then again, she may be a complete disaster. You'd imagine bertie wouldn't stick a dimwit in such an important department, but time will tell.

Yeah but, can you spell "right wing"?

One of those nice, shiny right wingers disguised as a woman... so you know, good to parade in front of the cameras... but right wing all the same.

At least that was my impression of her, when I queried a quote from her "Given at a Microsoft funded conference" where the then Minister for State tried to claim that Open Source Software (aka free software), could cost the State more in the long run.

Not that I question the Minister for State's ability to make such an assertion, but, the national government of Brazil, saw *billlions to be saved* from using Open Source... and never, you know, made any big policy announcements about sticking with Microsoft at a Microsoft funded event.

Funnily enough, I queried the Minister for State about where the Department had "looked into" OSS, as she claimed and the Department, never bothered to reply with "specifics" to my query and instead sent me a reply along the lines of "we understand you support Linux, but...", which of course basically proved to me, that the only "looking" the Minster had done on this issue, was in the Microsoft pamphlet, at the conference !

Moriarty

So?

She was hardly a decent "e-minister", but I'm still willing to give her the benefit of the doubt that she can infact do something useful as a minister, since she seemingly earnt her way into the position.

MadsL

Mary Harney @ Health.....*shudder*

I reckon Hanafin would be a bit of a poster child for the "knowledge economy" certainly a bit more dynamic than Martin - it will be interesting to see who grabs the limelight

Dynamic? Mare? - Are we talking about the same woman?

Typedef

Moriarty wrote:

So?

She was hardly a decent "e-minister", but I'm still willing to give her the benefit of the doubt that she can infact do something useful as a minister, since she seemingly earnt her way into the position.

Moriarty, that argument hardly holds water... you'd hardly promote a bad employee, in the hopes that they might make a better job of a position with more responsibility, then they did with the position of less responsibility... now would you?

I'm pointig out a very specific instance where from past experience of the Minister, I find her to be a mouth piece for a right wing agenda, and I'm further asserting that, promoting this person to the front benches, moves Fianna Fail further right, no matter how much the party might try to come off as lurching to the left by inviting leftie clerical-Fianna Fial types to march in front of an Ard Feis and sound like a raving Leninist only to laughed at, by his party colleagues in public !

To my mind... that's a highly inconsistent way to conduct government.

ArthurDent

MadsL wrote:

Mary Harney @ Health.....*shudder*



Dynamic? Mare? - Are we talking about the same woman?

more dynamic than Martin - that's all - and yes she is right wing, but it's a right wing government. In the context of who could have been given education, I think she is probably the best of a pretty bad bunch. Certainly from conversations I've had today with people involved in policy making in the 3rd level sector and with some INTO representatives today, both groups reckoned she would be someone you could work with.

vinnyfitz

Hanafin was toothless as "e-minister" cos she had no teeth (like all junior ministers). She had no budget to spend, no staff reporting to her (well about 6), no legislative responsibility, no time to spare after whipping in the backbenchers.

Now she has an opportunity to show her metal. I think she will do very well.
Future Party Leader material actually!

The Clown Man

Be interesting to see how Dermot Ahern does with the Peace-Process. Being a border-man he should have a good idea of the terrain he is facing.