Ógra Fianna Fáil
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| Ógra Fianna Fáil | |
|---|---|
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| Chairperson | Thomas Byrne |
| Vice-Chairperson | Joe O'Neill |
| Founded | 1975 |
| Headquarters | 65-66 Lower Mount St, Dublin 2 |
| Mother party | Fianna Fáil |
| European affiliation | European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party |
| Website | www.ogra.ie |
Ógra Fianna Fáil is the youth wing of Fianna Fáil, a major political party in Ireland. Within Fianna Fáil it is simply called Ógra (Irish for youth). It was founded in 1975 by party leader Jack Lynch under the guidance of party general secretary, Séamus Brennan. It is the largest youth political organisation on the island of Ireland with nearly 7000 members island - wide. In the Republic, it is active in every major Third Level Institute and in every Dáil constituency. It began recruiting members in Northern Ireland, beginning on 25 September 2007 in Derry at Magee College of the University of Ulster, and proceeding to Queen's University Belfast the following day.
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[edit] Organisation
Ógra is a full member of Fianna Fáil itself. The national leadership of Ógra is the National Youth Committee, which is elected at the National Youth Conference which takes place every year to 18 months.
Six members of the Youth Committee are on the Ard Comhairle (the national governing body) of Fianna Fáil. This also includes the Leas-Cathaoirleach who is elected by all the members, one representative from third-level institution branches, and one from each of the four European Parliament constituencies in the Republic of Ireland of South, East, North-West and Dublin.
There are sixteen further members of the Youth Committee: three from each European constituency and four from the third level sector. Ógra Fianna Fáil recently expanded into Northern Ireland and as such is expected to reform its structures to reflect its new all-island status in the near future.
[edit] Cathaoirleach Ógra
The Cathaoirleach (chair) is independent of election and is appointed by the President of Fhianna Fáil. The Cathaoirelach is normally a member of the Dáil or Seanad but not usually a minister. This has recently changed, with the appointment of Dara Calleary as Minister of State (with special responsibility for Labour Affairs). The purpose of having a member of the parliamentary party as Cathaoirleach is to provide a direct link for policy purposes.
Calleary was appointed as Cathaoirleach Ógra at the National Youth Conference which took place in Tullamore in 2008. The change of Cathaoirleach was widely anticipated following the appointment of Barry Andrews as Minister of State (with special responsibility for Children).
[edit] Kevin Barry Cumann – UCD
The Kevin Barry Cumann is the branch of the Fianna Fáil political party in University College Dublin (UCD). The society, or cumann predates the founding of Ogra Fianna Fáil which was established in 1974 and has records of being active dating to as early as 1948 when Seán Lemass addressed the cumann.[1] The cumann formally dates to 1957 when led by Gerry Collins, then a student organiser in UCD and later Minister for Foreign Affairs and an MEP. The Cumann is named after Kevin Barry (1902–1920), a former medical student of the University who fought and was executed during the Irish War of Independence. It is the largest cumann in Fianna Fáil with over 600 members consistently joining each year.
[edit] Members
Prominent Fianna Fáil members who were members of the Cumann include former European Commissioner Charlie McCreevy, current Irish government ministers Dick Roche and Mary Coughlan, and RTÉ presenter Ryan Tubridy. The author and former political lobbyist Frank Dunlop was a member. The Cumann is run by an officer board elected by members annually at its annual general meeting. It is the largest student political organisation in UCD.
[edit] Other Third Level branches
- Dublin City University – Patrick Pearse Cumann
- National University of Ireland, Galway – Cumann De Barra
- National University of Ireland, Maynooth – Seán Lemass Cumann
- Queen's University Belfast – William Drennan Cumann
- Trinity College, Dublin – Wolfe Tone Cumann
- University College Cork – Donogh O'Malley Cumann
- University of Limerick – Conn Colbert Cumann
- University of Ulster
[edit] References
- ^ Tom Garvin, Preventing The Future: Why was Ireland so poor for so long? (Gill & Macmillan, Dublin, 2004) paperback. pp.225 ISBN 0-7171-3970-0
[edit] External links
- Ógra Online – Official website
- Fianna Fáil website
- Queens University Belfast Ógra Cumann website
- Kevin Barry Cumann
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