Brendan Daly

Who is Brendan Daly?

Brendan Daly is a former Irish Fianna Fáil politician. He was a long-serving Teachta Dála for the Clare constituency, a government minister, and Senator.

Daly was born in February 1940 in Cooraclare, County Clare, and educated locally at CBS Kilrush school. His political career began at the 1973 general election, when he was elected to Dáil Éireann as a Fianna Fáil TD for Clare. He held his seat at six further general elections before losing it at the 1992 general election. He was returned at the 1997 general election but was defeated again in the 2002 general election.

Daly was a strong supporter of Charles Haughey during his period as Fianna Fáil leader. In 1980 Daly became Minister of State at the Department of Labour. In 1982 he joined the Cabinet as Minister for Fisheries and Forestry. When Fianna Fáil returned to power after the 1987 general election he once again became a minister, this time as Minister for the Marine in the Twentieth Government of Ireland.

Daly lost his Cabinet seat when Fianna Fáil entered into coalition with the Progressive Democrats after the 1989 general election. He returned to the Cabinet in February 1991 as Minister for Defence. In November Albert Reynolds and Pádraig Flynn were sacked from the government and Daly was appointed Minister for Social Welfare. His time in Cabinet was short-lived because he was one of eight ministers who was sacked when Reynolds became Taoiseach in February 1992. Daly lost his Dáil seat in the election that year, but stood in the Seanad Éireann elections on the Agricultural Panel, and was returned to the 20th Seanad.