Charlie Flanagan (born 1 November 1956) is an Irish
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 has been 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 since 2020, and previously from 1987 to 2002, 2007 to 2016 and from 2016 to 2020 for the
Laois
County Laois ( ; gle, Contae Laoise) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and in the province of Leinster. It was known as Queen's County from 1556 to 1922. The modern county takes its name from Loígis, a medi ...
constituency. He was appointed Chair of the
Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence in September 2020. He previously served as
Minister for Justice and Equality from 2017 to 2020,
Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade from 2014 to 2017,
Minister for Children and Youth Affairs from May to July 2014 and
Chair of the Fine Gael Parliamentary Party from 2011 to 2014.
Personal life
His father was
Oliver J. Flanagan, an Irish
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
Minister for Defence in the late 1970s. Flanagan is married and has two daughters.
Career
Flanagan was first elected to
Dáil Éireann at the
1987 general election, succeeding his father
Oliver J. Flanagan. He retained his seat at each election until losing it at the
2002 general election, but regained it at the
2007 general election.
Flanagan was a member of
Laois County Council
Laois County Council ( ga, Comhairle Chontae Laoise) is the authority responsible for local government in County Laois, Ireland. As a county council, it is governed by the Local Government Act 2001. The council is responsible for housing and co ...
from 1985 until he stepped down in 2004. He was party Spokesperson on
Justice, Equality and Law Reform from 2007 to 2010, and was the party Spokesperson on Children from 2010 to 2011.
He was Chairman of the Fine Gael Parliamentary Party from June 2011 to May 2014.
On 7 May 2014, following the resignation of
Alan Shatter as Minister for Justice and
Minister for Defence, Flanagan was appointed the following day as Minister for Children and Youth Affairs to succeed
Frances Fitzgerald, who assumed the Justice portfolio. On 11 July 2014, Flanagan was appointed as Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, succeeding the former
Labour leader
Eamon Gilmore Eamonn or Éamon or Eamon may refer to:
* Eamonn (given name), an Irish male given name
* Eamon (singer) (born 1983), American R&B singer-songwriter and harmonicist
* ''Eamon'' (video game), a 1980 computer role-playing game for the Apple II
*"Éam ...
.
Upon the appointment of
Leo Varadkar as
Taoiseach
The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legislature) and the o ...
on 14 June 2017, Flanagan was appointed as Minister for Justice and Equality.
He campaigned in favour of a Yes vote in the
2018 Irish abortion referendum. Flanagan was replaced as Minister for Justice by
Helen McEntee
Helen McEntee (born 8 June 1986) is an Irish Fine Gael politician who has served as Minister for Justice from June 2020 to November 2022. From April to November 2021, she became a minister without portfolio during a period of maternity leave ...
on the formation of a
new government with
Micheál Martin
Micheál Martin (; born 1 August 1960) is an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who is serving as Tánaiste, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Minister for Defence since December 2022. He served as Taoiseach from 2020 to 2022 and has been Leader of ...
as Taoiseach on 27 June 2020.
British forces commemoration
As Minister for Justice in 2020, Flanagan was behind plans for a state commemoration of the
Royal Irish Constabulary
The Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC, ga, Constáblacht Ríoga na hÉireann; simply called the Irish Constabulary 1836–67) was the police force in Ireland from 1822 until 1922, when all of the country was part of the United Kingdom. A separate ...
(RIC), the police force in Ireland while it was under British rule. This drew widespread criticism from politicians and the public, largely due to the RIC's role in suppressing Irish independence movements, and atrocities by the
Black and Tans
Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have ...
during the
War of Independence
This is a list of wars of independence (also called liberation wars). These wars may or may not have been successful in achieving a goal of independence.
List
See also
* Lists of active separatist movements
* List of civil wars
* List o ...
.
A member of the government-appointed advisory group said they had "recommended a simple ceremony in Dublin Castle, but somebody lost the run of themselves and called it a State event".
The backlash forced Flanagan to defer the commemoration, but he committed to holding another in future.
Flanagan supported a memorial wall in
Glasnevin Cemetery
Glasnevin Cemetery ( ga, Reilig Ghlas Naíon) is a large cemetery in Glasnevin, Dublin, Ireland which opened in 1832. It holds the graves and memorials of several notable figures, and has a museum.
Location
The cemetery is located in Glasne ...
that drew controversy for commemorating British soldiers alongside Irish revolutionaries. He condemned the decision to take down the wall as a "victory for bullies". Flanagan has also defended his wearing of the
remembrance poppy
A remembrance poppy is an artificial flower worn in some countries to commemorate their military personnel who died in war. Remembrance poppies are produced by veterans' associations, who exchange the poppies for charitable donations used to g ...
, a historically
controversial emblem in Ireland, calling it an "international symbol of remembrance".
References
External links
Charlie Flanagan's page on the Fine Gael website
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Flanagan, Charles
1956 births
Alumni of University College Dublin
Fine Gael TDs
Living people
Local councillors in County Laois
Members of the 25th Dáil
Members of the 26th Dáil
Members of the 27th Dáil
Members of the 28th Dáil
Members of the 30th Dáil
Members of the 31st Dáil
Members of the 32nd Dáil
Members of the 33rd Dáil
Ministers for Foreign Affairs (Ireland)
Ministers for Justice (Ireland)
People from Mountmellick
Politicians from County Laois