Austin Deasy

Who is Austin Deasy?

Austin Deasy is a former Irish Fine Gael politician. He was a TD for the Waterford constituency from 1977 until his retirement at the 2002 general election.

Austin Deasy was born in Dungarvan, County Waterford in August 1936. He was educated in Dungarvan and at University College Cork where he qualified as a schoolteacher, and he taught at St Augustines college. In 1967 he entered politics for the first time becoming a Fine Gael member of Dungarvan Urban District Council. He failed in his bids to get elected to Dáil Éireann in 1969 and 1973. However on the latter occasion he was nominated as a member of Seanad Éireann by the Taoiseach, Liam Cosgrave. He was finally elected to the Dáil at the 1977 general election.

In 1982 Deasy was appointed to the Cabinet as Minister for Agriculture. He held that position until the collapse of the government in 1987. In 1988 he resigned from the Fine Gael Party in protest against Alan Dukes's Tallaght Strategy in which Fine Gael would support the minority Fianna Fáil government. The following year Deasy tried unsuccessfully to remove Dukes as leader. Deasy returned to the Fine Gael front bench in 1991 after John Bruton became leader. Deasy later resigned again due to the financial difficulties of the party was facing. In 2000 Deasy introduced an unsuccessful motion of no confidence in Bruton.