Fergus O'Dowd
| Fergus O'Dowd TD | |
|---|---|
| Minister of State for the NewEra Project | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 10 March 2011 |
|
| Preceded by | New Office |
| Teachta Dála | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office May 2002 |
|
| Constituency | Louth |
| Senator | |
| In office September 1997 – May 2002 |
|
| Constituency | Administrative Panel |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1 September 1948 Thurles, County Tipperary |
| Nationality | Irish |
| Political party | Fine Gael |
| Spouse(s) | Agnes O'Dowd |
| Children | 3 |
Fergus O'Dowd (born 1 September 1948) is an Irish Fine Gael politician. He is currently a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Louth constituency,[1] and the Minister of State for the NewEra Project.[2]
O'Dowd was born in Thurles, County Tipperary. He was educated by the Christian Brothers in Drogheda, County Louth. He currently resides in the town. He served three terms as Mayor of Drogheda: 1977–78, 1981–82 and 1994–95. He served on Louth County Council between 1979 and 2003. He is married to Agnes and has three sons. He is a brother of Niall O'Dowd, publisher of the Irish Voice newspaper in New York City.
A teacher before entering politics, O'Dowd was elected to Seanad Éireann on the Administrative Panel in 1997. He was first elected to Dáil Éireann at the 2002 general election.[3] He was immediately appointed Fine Gael spokesperson for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs. He was party spokesperson on Environment, Heritage and Local Government from 2004–2007, and on Transport and Marine from 2007–2010. In June 2010, he supported Richard Bruton's leadership challenge to Enda Kenny. Following Kenny's victory in a motion of confidence, he was appointed as party spokesperson on Education and Skills.[4]
On 10 March 2011, he was appointed as Minister of State for the NewEra Project.[2]
[edit] References
- ^ "Mr. Fergus O'Dowd". Oireachtas Members Database. http://oireachtas.ie/members-hist/default.asp?housetype=1&HouseNum=21&MemberID=1833&ConstID=208. Retrieved 12 October 2009.
- ^ a b Government economic stimulus plan
- ^ "Fergus O'Dowd". ElectionsIreland.org. http://www.electionsireland.org/candidate.cfm?ID=3194. Retrieved 12 October 2009.
- ^ "Bruton & Noonan return to Fine Gael frontbench". RTÉ News. 1 July 2010. http://www.rte.ie/news/2010/0701/finegael.html. Retrieved 3 July 2010.
[edit] External links
| Oireachtas | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Brendan McGahon (Fine Gael) |
Fine Gael Teachta Dála for Louth 2002–present |
Incumbent |
| Political offices | ||
| New office | Minister of State for the NewEra Project 2011–present |
Incumbent |
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