Ivan Yates

Ivan Yates (born 23 October 1959), is a former senior Irish politician. He was elected as a Fine Gael TD representing the Wexford constituency in the 1981 general election and at each election until his retirement from politics in 2002. He has also served as Minister for Agriculture, Food & Forestry (1994–1997).

Yates was born in Enniscorthy, County Wexford. He is a member of the Church of Ireland and was educated at St. Columba's College, Rathfarnham and Gurteen Agricultural College, County Tipperary. Aged only 21 years and 8 months, when first elected in 1981, he was the youngest Member of the 22nd Dáil and is also the fourth youngest ever member of Dáil Éireann after William J. Murphy, Lorcan Allen and Kathleen O'Connor. He became involved in local politics when he became a member of Wexford County Council, serving until 1995 and again since 1999. he joined the Fine Gael front bench in 1988 and was appointed Minister for Agriculture, Food & Forestry when the Party came to power in 1994.

Yates oversaw a particularly difficult period for Irish agriculture. Farmers saw the prices they received for their produce plummet, he stopped live animal exports in response to controversy over cruelty in shipping and took on the veterinary union over the tuberculosis eradication scheme. He also had to deal with a sharp rise in the number of BSE cases during 1996 and the consequent banning of Irish beef by Russia. When John Bruton resigned as leader of Fine Gael in January 2001, there was much speculation that Yates would be a contender for the vacant position. Instead, he announced to his colleagues that he was leaving full-time politics to concentrate on his family and business interests and that he would not be contesting the next general election.

He is the chairman and managing director of Celtic Bookmakers, an Irish chain of betting shops, and has expanded the company from its Wexford base to a chain of 64 shops around the country.

Yates' leadership has been very much in evidence in the bookmaking industry. He has been heading a group of bookmakers in a court case against the British Horseracing Board (BHB) over data rights. Although the issue has yet to be resolved in the Irish courts, UK bookmaker William Hill has already defeated the BHB on this issue in the Court of Appeal and the European Court of Justice. Yates is hoping that the court will also force the BHB to pay back the £15m a year that Irish bookmakers have been paying the BHB for data rights since 2002.

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