The Leader of the Seanad (referred to within the Seanad as Leader of the House Irish: Treoraí an Tí) is a member of Seanad Éireann appointed by the Taoiseach to direct government business.[1][2] Since December 2022, the incumbent is Lisa Chambers of Fianna Fáil. The deputy leader of the Seanad is Seán Kyne of Fine Gael.
| Leader of the Seanad | |
|---|---|
 |
Role
editThe Leader plays a similar role in the Seanad's procedure to that played by the Taoiseach in Dáil Éireann:[3]
- moving the day's order of business
- may present a government bill without prior notice
- ex-officio member of the Committee on Procedure and Privileges
- may move a vote of sympathy
History
editIn the Seanad of the Irish Free State, there was no separate position of Leader.[1] The order of business was controlled by the Cathaoirleach (chair).[1] This was a symptom of the Seanad's independence from the Executive Council (government), which annoyed Éamon de Valera as President of the Executive Council.[1] De Valera's Fianna Fáil government secured the abolition of the Seanad in 1936.[1]
De Valera's 1937 Constitution created a new Seanad with less independence from the Dáil. The standing orders of the new Seanad provided for the role of Leader to control the flow of business from the government.[3][1] A 2004 Seanad report into reforming its own functions recommended that the Leader be allowed to attend cabinet meetings, with a rank of minister or minister of state.[1][4] Maurice Manning noted in 2010 that recent Leaders had more influence with the government, leading to increased input by the Seanad into legislation.[1]
List
edit| Name | Term of office | Party | Governments | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| William Quirke[5] | 1938 | 1948 | Fianna Fáil | 2nd, 3rd, 4th | ||
| Michael Hayes[5] | 1948 | 1951 | Fine Gael | 5th | ||
| William Quirke[5] | 1951 | 1954 | Fianna Fáil | 6th | ||
| Michael Hayes[5] | 1954 | 1957 | Fine Gael | 7th | ||
| Thomas Mullins | 1957 | 1973 | Fianna Fáil | 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th | ||
| Michael J. O'Higgins | 1 June 1973 | 27 October 1977 | Fine Gael | 14th | ||
| Eoin Ryan Snr | 27 October 1977 | 8 October 1981 | Fianna Fáil | 15th, 16th | ||
| Gemma Hussey | 8 October 1981 | February 1982 | Fine Gael | 17th | Vacated Leadership and Seanad seat upon election to Dáil. | |
| Eoin Ryan Snr | 26 March 1982 | 21 December 1982 | Fianna Fáil | 18th | ||
| James Dooge | 21 December 1982 | 3 April 1987 | Fine Gael | 19th | ||
| Mick Lanigan | 3 April 1987 | 16 May 1990 | Fianna Fáil | 20th, 21st | Resigned as Leader after Fianna Fáil lost a series of votes while all its senators were absent. | |
| Seán Fallon | 16 May 1990 | 23 January 1992 | Fianna Fáil | 21st | Vacated Leadership upon being elected Cathaoirleach to replace Seán Doherty | |
| G. V. Wright | 23 January 1992 | 20 December 1994 | Fianna Fáil | 21st, 22nd, 23rd | The 21st government ended when Charles Haughey resigned as Taoiseach, seven days after Doherty's resignation as Cathaoirleach over the same controversy. | |
| Maurice Manning | 20 December 1994 | 17 September 1997 | Fine Gael | 24th | ||
| Donie Cassidy | 17 September 1997 | May 2002 | Fianna Fáil | 25th | Vacated Leadership and Seanad seat upon election to Dáil. | |
| Mary O'Rourke | 26 June 2002 | May 2007 | Fianna Fáil | 26th | Vacated Leadership and Seanad seat upon election to Dáil. | |
| Donie Cassidy | 3 July 2007 | 25 May 2011 | Fianna Fáil | 27th, 28th | ||
| Maurice Cummins | 25 May 2011 | 8 June 2016 | Fine Gael | 29th | ||
| Jerry Buttimer | 8 June 2016 | 27 June 2020 | Fine Gael | 30th, 31st | ||
| Regina Doherty | 27 June 2020 | 17 December 2022 | Fine Gael | 32nd | ||
| Lisa Chambers | 17 December 2022 | Incumbent | Fianna Fáil | 33rd, 34th | ||
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h Manning, Maurice (2010). "The Senate" (PDF). In MacCarthaigh, Muiris; Manning, Maurice (eds.). The Houses of the Oireachtas: Parliament in Ireland. Dublin: Institute of Public Administration. pp. 153–168. ISBN 978-1-904541-93-6. Retrieved 12 October 2018.
- ^ "Seanad Éireann". How Parliament works. Oireachtas. 10 April 2018. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
- ^ a b Éireann, Seanad (20 June 2017). "Standing Orders relative to Public Business" (PDF). pp. 91–92. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
- ^ Committee on Procedure and Privileges, Sub-Committee on Seanad Reform (19 April 2004). "Report on Seanad Reform" (PDF). Seanad Éireann. p. 62. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 May 2004.
- ^ a b c d "Death of Senator". Seanad Éireann (in Irish). Oireachtas. 9 March 1955. Retrieved 11 October 2018.
When the Seanad was reconstituted in 1938, he was elected a member on the Agricultural Panel and served either as Leader of the House or as Leader of the Opposition until his death. [...] For the greater part of that period, he was Leader of the House and I was Leader of the Opposition. We changed places twice