Seán Conlan (born 1975) is an Irish former

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

politician, who formerly sat as a member of

Fine Gael Fine Gael ( ; ; ) is a centre-right, liberal-conservative, 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 Éireann. The party had a member ...

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 ...

. He was elected as a

Teachta Dála A Teachta Dála ( ; ; plural ), abbreviated as TD (plural ''TDanna'' in Irish language, Irish, TDs in English), is a member of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas, the parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The official Engli ...

(TD) for the Cavan–Monaghan constituency at the 2011 general election. He lives in

Ballybay Ballybay () is a town and civil parish in County Monaghan, Ireland. The town is centred on the crossroads of the R183 and R162 roads. Geography The town is the meeting point for roads going to Monaghan, Castleblayney, Carrickmacross and ...

, County Monaghan. A solicitor by profession, he was educated at St Macartan's College, Monaghan and 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 ...

where he obtained an honours degree in economics. He is a son of John Conlan who was TD for

Monaghan Monaghan ( ; ) is the county town of County Monaghan, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It also provides the name of its Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish and Monaghan (barony), Monaghan barony. The population of the town as of the 2022 cen ...

and Cavan–Monaghan, and also a

Senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

. Conlan was elected to Ballybay Town Council at the 2009 local elections, topping the poll on his first attempt. In January 2011 he was added (with only four weeks left) to the Fine Gael ticket for the February general election. Conlan was the subject of controversy when it was revealed by the ''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray backgrou ...

'' that he had hired his girlfriend (a practicing

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 ...

) for the position of his Dáil assistant in 2012. The position comes with an annual salary of €50,000. In early September 2015 he was arrested under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act following a pub brawl on 23 August 2015. He resigned from Fine Gael on 24 November 2015 and contested the 2016 general election as an independent candidate. Following his September 2015 arrest, he faced two charges under the Firearms and Offensive Weapons Act and another of assault causing harm. On 1 December 2015 he was remanded on bail, and due to appear before the

Carrickmacross Carrickmacross () is a town in County Monaghan, Ireland. The population was 5,745 at the 2022 census of Ireland, 2022 census, making it the second-largest town in the county. Carrickmacross is a market town which developed around a castle buil ...

District Court in January 2016. He lost his seat at the 2016 general election.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Conlan, Sean 1975 births Living people Alumni of University College Dublin Fine Gael TDs Independent TDs Irish solicitors Members of Monaghan County Council Members of the 31st Dáil People from Ballybay People educated at St Macartan's College, Monaghan

See also

References