Brendan Howlin

Infobox Politician
name = Brendan Howlin
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office = Leas-Cheann Comhairle (Deputy Speaker)
term_start = 26 June 2007
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spouse = Unmarried
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residence = Wexford cite web |url=http://www.oireachtas.ie/members-hist/default.asp?MemberFirstName=brendan&MemberName=Howlin&restr=1&disp=src&housetype=0&HouseNum=30&ConstID=30|title=Brendan Howlin - Members Database |work= Houses of the Oireachtas Website
accessdate=2008-05-12] and Dublin cite news
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title = Connick tops county list of TD’s interests
work = New Ross Standard
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date = Wednesday, 19 March 2008
url = http://www.newrossstandard.ie/news/connick-tops-county-list-of-tds-interests-1322795.html | accessdate = 2008-05-12]
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birth_date = Birth date and age|1956|5|9|df=y
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constituency3 = Wexford
party = Labour Party |

Brendan Howlin ( _ga. Breandán Ó Húilín; born 9 May 1956) is an Irish Labour Party politician.cite web |url=http://oireachtas.ie/members-hist/default.asp?housetype=0&HouseNum=30&MemberID=535&ConstID=181 |title=Mr Brendan Howlin |work=Oireachtas Members Database |accessdate=2007-01-09] He was elected as a Labour Party Teachta Dála (TD) for Wexford in 1987 and has held his seat ever since. He has previously served as Minister for Health (1993–1994) and Minister for the Environment (1994–1997). He is currently the Labour Party Spokesperson on Constitutional Matters and Law Reform. cite web |url= http://www.labour.ie/brendanhowlin/
title=Profile of Brendan Howlin
work=Labour Party Website
accessdate=2008-05-12]

Early and private life

Named after former Labour Party leader Brendan Corish, Brendan Howlin was born in Wexford in 1956. He was educated locally at Wexford CBS and St. Patrick's Teacher Training College, Drumcondra, Dublin. He worked as a primary school teacher before embarking on a political career in 1981 on Wexford Borough Council.

Brendan Howlin is the son of John and Molly Howlin, cite news
last =
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title = Family was most important thing in life of Molly Howlin
work = Wexford People
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date = Thursday, 18 December 2003
url = http://www.wexfordpeople.ie/news/family-was-most-important-thing-in-life-of-molly-howlin-987909.html| accessdate = 2008-05-12] who lived in Wexford town. His father, John Howlin, was a trade union official (secretary of Irish Transport and General Workers' Union in Wexford for 40 years), a member of Wexford Corporation (for 18 years) and election agent to the former Tánaiste, Brendan Corish. John Howlin died in the mid-1980s. Brendan Howlin's mother, Molly, whose maiden name was Dunbar, died in December 2003, aged 86 years. She was born in Ferns. Brendan Howlin’s brother, Ted, is active in local politics in Co. Wexford cite news
last =
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title = Ted to replace his brother on Council
work = Wexford People
pages =
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date = Thursday, 19 June 2003
url = http://www.wexfordpeople.ie/news/ted-to-replace-his-brother-on-council-1174466.html| accessdate = 2008-05-12] and is a Councillor on Wexford County Council. He also has two sisters - Mary and Jackie.

Political career

He was unsuccessful in his attempt to be elected to Dáil Éireann in November 1982,cite web |url=http://electionsireland.org/candidate.cfm?ID=3568 |title=Brendan Howlin |work=ElectionsIreland.org |accessdate=2007-01-09] however, he was then nominated by the Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald to serve in the 17th Seanad Éireann. Howlin was successful on his second attempt when he was elected as a Labour Party TD, retaking the traditional Labour Party seat in the Wexford constituency in the 1987 general election.

Howlin was immediately appointed Labour Party Chief Whip, a position he held until 1993. That year he became Minister for Health in the Fianna Fáil–Labour Party coalition government. After the fall of the Fianna Fáil–Labour Party coalition in December 1994, he was appointed Minister for the Environment in the new "Rainbow Coalition" government between Fine Gael, the Labour Party and Democratic Left.

When Dick Spring resigned in 1997 as leader of the Labour Party, Howlin stood in the resuling election, but lost to the former Minister of Finance Ruairi Quinn. He became Deputy Leader of the party instead. In 2002, following Quinn's resignation as party leader after Labour's relatively unsuccessful 2002 election campaign, Howlin again stood for the party leadership. [cite web |url=http://archives.tcm.ie/irishexaminer/2002/09/11/story823047586.asp |title=Howlin throws hat into Labour leadership ring |date=11 September 2002 |work=The Irish Examiner |accessdate=2007-01-09] However, he was defeated again, this time by Pat Rabbitte, who was formerly a leading figure in Democratic Left. [cite web |url=http://www.independent.ie/national-news/victorious-rabbitte-aims-to-increase-partys-appeal-290699.html |title=Victorious Rabbitte aims to increase party's appeal |author=Senan Molony |date=26 October 2002 |work=The Irish Examiner |accessdate=2007-01-09] Howlin was succeeded as deputy leader by Liz McManus.

While having been publicly supportive of Rabbitte's leadership, he is perceived as being the leader of the wing of the party which is sceptical of Rabbitte's policy with regard to future coalition with Fianna Fáil. Rabbitte explicitly ruled out any future coalition with Fianna Fáil, instead forming a formal alliance with Fine Gael in the run-up to the 2007 general election (the so-called "Mullingar Accord").

On 26 June 2007, he was appointed the Leas-Cheann Comhairle ("Deputy Speaker") of Dáil Éireann.

References

External links

* [http://www.brendanhowlin.ie Brendan Howlin's website]

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