Читать книгу Inside the Room - Eamon Gilmore - Страница 7

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

After I had stepped down as Labour Party Leader and had been removed from government office, several friends suggested that I should write about my time in office, and especially about Ireland’s recovery from the crisis. I want to thank them for their encouragement, without which I would not have started this task in the first place.

Getting the project to publication depended on the work of several people: my agent Peter O’Connell; Paul O’Connor who edited my first draft; Conor Graham, Lisa Hyde and all at Merrion Press who brought the book to fruition, and especially my staff Aideen Blackwood and Sharon Gibbons who laboured with it at every step.

This book is my story of Ireland’s crisis government. It is inevitably subjective, but I have made every effort to ensure that it is factually accurate.

While it is my own personal recollection of the years from 2007 to 2014, it tells of a journey which I travelled with a dedicated, committed and loyal team.

My Chief of Staff Mark Garrett was a former Chairperson of Labour Youth, who had worked in public relations, and was a management consultant with McKinsey in New York, when I asked him to come home to head up my team, after I was elected Leader of the Labour Party in 2007.

Dr Colm O’Reardon, was employed by Ruairi Quinn in 2001, when he was Leader, to be Economic Advisor to the Labour Party. He remained on with Pat Rabbitte and was Labour’s Director of Policy during our years in opposition. I appointed him as my Principal Policy Advisor in Government, and he served with me on the Economic Management Council.

Jean O’Mahony had worked as a policy advisor for the Labour Party since 2006. She was an indispensable part of our team in Government, covering the broad range of policy issues coming before Cabinet.

Cathy Madden, who had worked as a radio journalist with Newstalk, came to work for Labour at the end of 2010. I appointed her as Deputy Government Press Secretary shortly after the formation of the new Government. When Cathy went on maternity leave in 2013, I brought in former Labour TD Derek McDowell, to fill this role.

Niamh Sweeney had worked as a journalist for RTE, the Irish Times and Bloomberg, and was based in New York when I asked her to return home to work for me in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

David Leach was a former Treasurer of the Labour Party who managed his own construction company. Mark Garrett brought him in to manage the Local and European Election campaign in 2009 and subsequently I appointed him as national organiser and as Political Director of the Party. My successor subsequently appointed him as the Party’s General Secretary.

Karen Griffin had worked for the Irish Family Planning Association, and was head hunted by Mark Garrett to manage my campaign tours and to act as my liaison with the Labour Party organisation and members.

Kevin Eager provided transport services to the Labour Party and he and I travelled the country together during the years in opposition. Kevin did not believe in being late for anything “We were never late, but the schedule had changed,” he used to re-assure those who were waiting!

Doreen Foley was Personal Assistant to the Party Leader, having been appointed to that position by my predecessor, Pat Rabbitte. She had for many years been PA to the Managing Director of the student travel company USIT, the late Gordon Colleary. Doreen had the unenviable task in Government of responding to complaints from the public about me, the Party and the Coalition.

Angela Loscher managed my constituency office from the early 1990s, with great efficiency and enormous compassion for the problems of constituents. She retired during the life of the Government.

She was replaced by Sharon Gibbons, who along with Aideen Blackwood make up the hard-working and committed team that remained working with me after I stepped down as Tánaiste and Labour Party Leader.

And over the years Anne Coleman, Stephen Fitzpatrick and Jeni Gartland also worked in my constituency office.

Tony Heffernan, whose reputation in Leinster House and among the press corp has never been rivalled, headed the press office until his retirement around the time of the General Election. His replacement Dermot O’Gara continues this fine service.

Ronan Farren had previously worked in the Press Office and I brought him back as Deputy Political Director and he also advised me on Northern Ireland matters.

Shauneen Armstrong did a great job in charge of photography and the Party’s online presence.

I want to pay tribute to the staff of the Labour Head Office, headed then by General Secretary Ita McAuliffe, and I want to thank her predecessor, Mike Allen, for his help in my early days as Leader.

It was a privilege to work with my colleagues in the Parliamentary Labour Party, especially the Chairperson Jack Wall TD and Party Whip Emmet Stagg TD.

I thank all the Labour Councillors, none of whom were ever found to have done wrong by any tribunal. It is a great tribute to their personal integrity, and to the strong public service ethic of the Party itself.

A special thanks to all the Labour Party members throughout the country. They give their time and energy voluntarily to our common cause. In Dun Laoghaire I have been particularly fortunate to have the support and friendship of hundreds of members, among them Senator Aideen Hayden and the Labour Councillors with whom I’ve served: Carrie Smyth, her late father Frank Smyth, Niamh Bhreathnach, Jane Dillon Byrne, Denis O’Callaghan, Lettie McCarthy, Richard Humphreys, Stephen Fitzpatrick, Donna Pierce, Paddy Fitzgerald, Sean Misteail and Deirdre Kingston.

Finally, a special word of appreciation for former Labour TD Barry Desmond and his wife Stella who supported me and gave me good advice during difficult times.

Above all I want to thank my family Carol, Gráinne, Oisín and Seán for their love and incalculable strength over the years.