The Era of Bertie Ahern
Bertie Ahern played a central role in the achievement of the Good Friday Agreement within a year after becoming Taoiseach. He also presided over an extraordinary economic boom as various economic indices catapulted Ireland from having been one of the economic sick men of the European Community to being one of the leaders. The nation set an example for future relatively undeveloped European nations aspiring for membership. Emigration figures, which had assumed high numbers in the mid-1980s, many of whom departing illegally for the United States, were reversed as employment opportunities blossomed for a very well-educated young population. Massive American investment, drawn by the low capital gains tax rates that contrasted with the rest of Europe, played a major part in the boom. The economic good times provided a peace dividend, as the ending of major violence in Northern Ireland created an atmosphere of calm for the whole island.
Unfortunately, the economic prosperity was accompanied by the revelation of a variety of scandals implicating several Irish political figures, especially, but not exclusively, members of Fianna Fail. The charges prompted the formation of a number of committees of inquiry whose investigations would last several years and give great insight into various forms of corruption, but relatively few actual convictions, although reputations were severely damaged. The most celebrated politician subject to inquiry was the former Taoiseach, Charles J. Haughey, who admitted in July 1998 that he had received enormous gifts prior to and while serving as Taoiseach from wealthy individuals whose interests would be well served by a friend in government. The funds were lodged in offshore accounts, of which he claimed the entire management had been in the hands of his now deceased accountant.
The following October Minister for Foreign Affairs Ray Burke resigned after allegations that he had received gifts in return for influencing local planning decisions in the late 1980s. In January 1999 another Fianna Fail stalwart, Padraig Flynn, then a European Union commissioner, was accused of accepting as personal gifts political donations made while he was minister for the environment in 1989. In April 2000 the commission investigating corruption in decision planning in the Dublin County Council heard testimony from Frank Dunlop, a former Fianna Fail press secretary, that he had given thousands in "brown paper bags" to politicians to influence decisions. In May the commis-
Bank officials work on the Bank of Ireland's trading floor, Dublin, 2004.
(John Cogill/Bloomberg NewsILandov)
Sion investigating Haughey heard that the gifts he had received exceeded eight million pounds. The next month a Fianna Fail TD for Dublin West, Liam Lawlor, resigned from the party for uncooperative behavior before the tribunal examining his receipt of gifts. The same tribunal, headed by Justice Feargal Flood, heard, in the following March, May, and November, of the existence of offshore accounts held by Ray Burke, of his interventions on behalf of construction companies, and of the extraordinary size of the monetary gifts he received while minister for industry and commerce in 1989. In spite of all these scandals involving political figures with whom he was closely associated in the past, Ahern was able to distance himself from them.
The 1997 presidential election were held to select a successor to Mary Robinson, who had resigned a few months before the end of her term in order to assume a position with the United Nations. The Fianna Fail candidate, Mary McAleese, easily defeated three other women candidates, Adi Roche of Labour, Mary Banotti of Fine Gael, and independent Dana Rosemary Scallion together with one independent male candidate, Derek Nally. McAleese, a barrister and law professor at Queen's University Belfast, was reelected unopposed in 2004.
Other parties attempted to strengthen themselves and position themselves to better challenge Fianna Fail dominance. In January 1999 the Labour Party and the Democratic Left were amalgamated. The leader of the Labour Party, Dick Spring, had resigned in November 1997 following the very poor showing by the Labour Party candidate for the presidency. Ruairi Quinn, the Labour TD for Dublin Southeast and minister for finance in the Rainbow Coalition, replaced him. In early 2001 a revolt within Fine Gael deposed John Bruton as leader, even though the party had gained strength in the previous general election. Opponents argued that the gregarious and articulate Bruton lacked charisma and he was replaced by Michael Noonan, a TD for West Limerick, who had served in various cabinet positions in coalition governments, including the most recent led by Bruton.
The government narrowly survived a vote of no confidence in November 2001, but, in the general election of June 2002, Fianna Fail increased its strength by four votes, while Fine Gael's Dail membership was cut almost in half, falling to its lowest figure in half a century. Labour increased its numbers, as did the PD's, the Greens, and Sinn Fein. The later raised the feared specter of a hung Dail potentially tempting one or another party to consider a coalition or being dependent on Sinn Fein votes to form a government, even though the IRA had not yet disbanded as a private army nor decommissioned its stockpile of weapons and explosives. However, Fianna Fail strength and the votes of the PD's prevented that from happening as well as the need to rely on a handful of independents, whose agenda was primarily to advance local interests. After the election, Noonan and Quinn resigned their respective leadership posts and were replaced by the Fine Gael TD for Mayo, Enda Kenny, and the Labour and former Democratic Left TD for Dublin Southwest, Pat Rabbitte. In the new government Ahern and Mary Harney continued as Taoiseach and Tanaiste.
Sources of dissatisfaction and concern in Ireland persisted despite obvious widespread prosperity. Grave anxieties existed about the inadequacy of hospital facilities and the belt tightening needed in distributing public welfare benefits. Many were critical of the pro-market and low tax policies of Minister for Finance Charles McCreevy, although others saw these as the reason for prosperity. From another perspective, many sensitive commentators noted the coarsening of Irish society and a growth in materialistic preoccupation with possessions. Disturbing figures appeared about youthful addiction to alcohol and narcotics, less restrained sexuality as indicated by high figures for out-ofwedlock births, and even an increased proclivity to suicide. On the other hand, the influence of the church, the historic promoter of values, had been seriously damaged by a decade or more of revelations of sexual abuse by clergy of young people in their charge or under their influence. The state and the religious orders agreed to provide massive amounts of compensation to claimants of abuse who were residents in state-supported church-run orphanages and industrial schools.
Possible indicators of public unease was the results of June 2004 local and European parliament elections, which saw significant gains by Fine Gael, as well as Sinn Fein, which gained a seat in the European parliament and several places in local governmental bodies. In response, the government sought to put forward the more historic Fianna Fail pose as a populist party. Mac-Creevy became a European commissioner, and the foreign minister, Brian Cowan, a TD for Offaly, became minister for finance. He proposed a budget calling for greater generosity, removal of many of the unfortunate and the poorest paid from the tax roles altogether, and lessening of tax credits for the wealthy. One measure that took effect in 2004 and that gained surprising popular adherence and probable emulation in other countries was a ban on smoking in public houses.
World History
