History of the Labour Party
This is a transcript of the history displayed on posters at the 2012 centenary party conference:
Labour
100 Years
Context: International
Around the industrial world the early twentieth century was a period of turmoil and strife. A bitter struggle was ensuing between two entrenched camps, each declaring they would fight till the end, neither side willing to back down. Pitched battles took place across Western Europe: France, Germany, Britain were all scarred by the clashes. This struggle was felt as far to the east as the Russian Empire and to the west with the United States. This conflict could be really deemed a world war.
The events described are not those of the Great War of 1914, but the wave of industrial unrest which spread across the industrial nations between the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. From the coalmines of Pennsylvania to the factories of the Rhineland, workers began to organise, trade unions began to replace the medieval guilds and factory owners began to pay attention. The requests of the workers were not revolutionary but ordinary: a fair wage for a fair day’s work, security of employment and standards of safety in the workplace, rights taken for granted today. Opposing the unions was the power of the state, the bosses and the church, who felt that the organised workers were the most dangerous threat to the status quo since revolutionary France. Indeed the ideas of the French revolution were also encompassed in the ideas of the trade unions: egalitarianism, liberty and fraternity.
Context: Ireland
The ideas of the French revolution had a brief but bloody impact in Ireland. The United Irishman rebellion of 1798 sought to establish an Irish republic under the ideals of the French revolution. The rebellion was crushed by the forces of the British state, but as the maxim says, it is easier to defeat an army than to kill an idea.
The ideals of ’98 persisted behind the political development of O’Connell and Parnell. However these ideas would spring up intermittently in small localised rebellions. The Young Ireland Rebellion in 1848 and the Fenian Rebellion of 1867 but there were smaller conflicts throughout the late nineteenth century. These uprisings were mostly driven by land agitation.
PHOTO
Tenant farmers being evicted during the Land war 1870s.
Labour before Labour
It is with the land agitation movement that we can see the emergence of the Labour movement. Ireland remained an agrarian country during the nineteenth century, untouched by the industrial revolution occurring in Britain and Europe. However the ideas which were driving Chartism in Britain would find a home with the emerging Land League movements.
From the 1850s, small tenant farmers had begun to organise. The Tenant Right League was one of the first groups to do so. They sought the right to Fair Rent, Fixity of Tenure, and Free Sale. They would inspire the founding of such groups as the Knights of the Plough in 1892, the National Labour League in 1893, and the Irish Land and Labour Association in 1894.
Some of the key figures involved in the Land movements were D.D. Sheehan, a journalist, Member of Parliament for Mid-Cork, and founder of the Irish Land and Labour League. One of the most prominent leaders was Michael Davitt. A former child labourer, who lost his right arm in an industrial accident, Davitt was the most influential leader during the ‘Land War’. Inspired by the Chartists, Davitt joined the Irish Republican Brotherhood while living in England. He took part in the Fenian rising of 1867 and at the age of 15 he was sent to prison for treason. He was released from prison after seven years and set about to organise the tenant farmers. At several meetings he stated that “the land question can be definitely settled only by making the cultivators of the soil proprietors”. He led the Irish National Land League during the Land War, resisting evictions, organising reductions in rent, and following a policy of ostracism against Land Agents. The most famous of these events was the 1880 ‘Boycott’ in Mayo.
PHOTO
Michael Davitt (1846-1906).
Foundations
In the late nineteenth century the urban centres of Dublin and Belfast started to experience industrial development. This development drew people into the cities in search of work. Dublin was a city of huge contrasts, with the extremely wealthy living in close contact with the desperately impoverished.
It was from these centres that young socialist activists emerged. The first group of activists sought to establish trade unions and organise the working population. Jim Larkin and William O’Brien are two prominent figures in this group. In 1908 Larkin founded the ITGWU, a militant union which sought to include all workers into O.B.U. (One Big Union). The arrival of the militant form of trade unionism brought with it an explosion of disputes. Between 1908 and 1911 the ITGWU was involved in several hostile strikes.
The second group of activists were concerned with political organisation. James Connolly was the leading member of this group. Inspired by the political developments from Europe and Britain and the socialist writings of Marx and Engels, Connolly established the Irish Socialist Republican Party and ‘The Workers Republic’ newspaper in 1896.
These two groups would merge seamlessly together with Connolly becoming a leading member of the ITGWU and Larkin and O’Brien becoming more politically active. The foundations laid by Larkin, O’Brien and Connolly would come to fruition at the Trade Union Congress conference in 1912.
Photo:
James Connolly (1868-1916)
The Labour Party
At the TUC conference in Clonmel Town Hall, James Connolly, the ITGWU organiser in Belfast, took the floor. His motion called for the establishment of a political wing to ensure that ‘the independent representation of labour upon all public boards be and is hereby included among the objectives of this congress’. The motion was carried by 49 to 18. The formative years of the new party would see it involved in some of the most turbulent events of Irish history.
PHOTO:
National Executive Irish Trade Union Congress and Labour Party 1914.
Standing:
James Connolly, William O’Brien, M.J. Egan, Thomas Cassidy, W.E. Hill, Richard O’Carroll.
Sitting:
Thomas McPartlin, D.R. Campbell, P.T. Daly, James Larkin, M.J. O’Lehane.
Also a member, not in group: Thomas Johnson.
“The cause of labour is the cause of Ireland, the cause of Ireland is the cause of labour. They cannot be dissevered. Ireland seeks freedom. Labour seeks that an Ireland free should be the sole mistress of her own destiny, supreme owner of all material things within and upon her soil.”
James Connolly, April 1916
The 1913 Lockout
From August 1913 until February 1914 the Labour and trade union movement was involved in the great Dublin lockout. The combined forces of the State, Press and Church all sought to crush the ITGWU. The stalemate which followed caused months of hardship and poverty for the families of the working men and women. Riots and baton charges were a common scene on the streets of Dublin. Faced with aggression from the Dublin Metropolitan Police the workers established the Irish Citizen Army. Larkin was the leading union figure in Dublin, being arrested on several occasions in an attempt to remove the leader of the strike.
Faced with overwhelming odds, the workers were defeated but they claimed a moral victory. The traditional ballad of the lockout expresses the feelings of the workers.
Eight months we fought and eight months we starved,
We stood by Larkin through thick and thin,
But foodless homes and the crying of children,
They broke our hearts, we just couldn’t win.
Photo:
Page of Daily Sketch newspaper.
Newspaper description of Jim Larkin’s speech to the workers from the Imperial Hotel during the 1913 lockout.
Easter 1916
Photo:
Irish Citizen Army outside Liberty Hall during World War 1. Banner reads – ‘We serve neither King nor Kaiser, but Ireland’
The Home Rule Crisis of 1912 created an Ireland on the brink of sectarian civil war. With the outbreak of the Great War in 1914, the Home Rule bill was delayed until after the war. However plotting behind the scenes were the ever present IRB. Renewed following the failed Fenian rebellion of ’67 and inspired by the old Fenians like O’Donovan Rossa the young men of the IRB put their plans together to overthrow British Rule in Ireland.
At the same time the Labour movement was renewing itself. Jim Larkin had left Ireland following the lockout and James Connolly had become the leading figure in the movement. Connolly was opposed to the war in Europe, seeing the young working class men dying for the profits of the imperial ambitions of the great powers. Connolly began to put plans together to take advantage of the situation in Europe. With the ICA and the ITGWU they sought to establish a Workers Republic. The IRB and the ICA joined forces in an effort to form a united national uprising at Easter 1916. The proclamation of the republic was written by Connolly and printed in Liberty Hall. Connolly was also appointed Commandant-General of the Rising.
PHOTO:
Outside a damaged Liberty Hall following the Easter Rising 1916.
The Rising was crushed in five days by the British force. Connolly who had been badly injured in the GPO was executed along with the other leaders of the Rising. The media portrayed the Rising as a Sinn Fein rebellion. Labour not only lost its role in the rebellion but also its leader.
The 1918 Election and the First Dáil
The end of World War 1 and the prospect of an international peace conference, where the freedom of small nations in particular would be on the agenda, had a significant impact on the strategic approach of Irish nationalists and socialists to the 1918 general election.
The argument that the Irish electorate should speak with one voice on the issue of national self-determination was compelling and Labour decided not to contest the election. Sinn Fein won 73 of the 105 seats and in January 1919 these MPs formed Dáil Éireann at a meeting in the Mansion House in Dublin.
Labour had no representation in the first Dáil, but they were included in the decisions of the new government. Tom Johnson, the leader of the Labour Party, wrote the Democratic Programme, a radical vision for a fair society, adopted by the first Dáil.
The 1922 Election
Labour contested the June 1922 election held after the Dáil passed the Treaty which ended the War of Independence and established an Irish Free State. The election also saw a divided Sinn Fein run pro- and anti-Treaty candidates. Labour ran 18 candidates and won 17 seats, a stunning achievement. Labour’s role ensured that the new Free State would be a legitimate parliamentary democracy.
POSTER
“Stockport By-Election, March 27 1920
PUT HIM IN TO GET HIM OUT
Vote for O’BRIEN
The true workers candidate”
William O’Brien, interned during the War of Independence, contested the Stockport bye-election from prison.
The Return of Larkin
Jim Larkin returned from America in 1923 and immediately tensions between the leading personalities began to rise. William O’Brien had become the leading figure in the ITGWU and Larkin felt isolated upon his return. In September 1923 he founded the Irish Worker League and established closer connections with the Irish communist movement and the Soviet Union. He ran for election in September 1927 and won a seat, but due to a libel case won by O’Brien, Larkin was declared bankrupt and could not take his seat.
The 1927 Elections
Labour had their best election result in June 1927, winning 22 seats. The Cumann na nGaedheal minority government was very weak. When Fianna Fáil decided to enter the Dáil, they gave their support to the Labour motion of no confidence. Fianna Fáil, Labour and the National League had a majority to win the vote. However National League member John Jinks was not present for the vote, meaning the motion was tied and the Ceann Comhairle cast the deciding vote for the Government. Cumann na nGaedheal called an election to solve the current instability in the Dáil. The September 1927 election was a setback for Labour, it lost nine seats, including Johnson’s. TJ O’Connor became leader of the Party as it sought to rebuild in rapidly changing political circumstances.
PHOTO:
In August 1927 the Labour Party tabled a motion of ‘no confidence’ in the Cumann na nGaedheal government. The motion was defeated on the casting vote of the Ceann Comhairle.
Emerging from Leinster House following the vote:
Front left to right: Senator Tom Farren, Tom Johnson T.D., Senator John T. O’Farrell.
Back left to right: Dan Morrissey T.D., Patrick Hogan T.D., Richard Anthony T.D.
The 1932 Election
Campaigning in the face of the financial and organisational might of the two main parties, and fighting against ‘red scare’ tactics, Labour secured only seven seats in the 1932 election. Labour had battled the increasingly right-wing and authoritarian policies of Cumann na nGaedheal , now in power for 10 years, and the Party supported the election of a Fianna Fáil minority government. The Party secured commitments on housing, welfare and job creation in exchange for its support.
PHOTO:
The First Administrative Council of the Labour Party 1931
Seated: William O’Brien, Tom Johnson, Mary F. Davidson, William Norton, Michael J. Keyes
Standing: Luke J. Duffy, Thomas Nagle, T.J. Murphy, Archie Heron, T.J. O’Connell, John T. O’Farrell, William Davin, Robert Tynan
“He called to the workers, spoke as only Jim Larkin could speak, not for an assignation with peace, dark obedience, or placid resignation, but trumpet-tongued of resistance to wrong, discontent with leering poverty, and defiance of any power strutting out to stand in the way of their march onward.”
Seán O’Casey, in tribute to Larkin, Drums Under the Window.
The Split
James Larkin rejoined the Labour Party in 1941. Immediately the tensions between Larkin and O’Brien spilled over. O’Brien and the ITGWU disaffiliated with five TDs forming the National Labour Party.
PHOTO:
Jim Larkin campaigning during the 1943 General Election.
The 1948 Election
Following the Second World War, Fianna Fáil had been in power for 16 years. This was being challenged by the newly formed Clann na Poblachta. The election results showed that Fianna Fáil were still the biggest party, but didn’t have enough seats to form a government. Instead a broad coalition of Fine Gael, Labour, Clann na Poblachta, Clann na Talmhan and National Labour was formed. John A. Costello became Taoiseach and William Norton Tánaiste.
The First Inter-Party Government
Labour had three Ministers in the first inter-party government. Norton became Tánaiste and Minister for Social Welfare, T.J. Murphy became Minister for Local Government and James Everett (Leader of National Labour) became Minister for Posts and Telegraphs. (Michael Keys became Minister for Local Government on the death of T.J. Murphy.)
Some of the achievements of the inter-party government, driven largely by Labour, included improvements in Social Welfare, the building of public housing, and the advances in Health Care.
The eventual collapse of the government occurred due to the ‘Mother and Child scheme’. The Scheme was an attempt by Minister for Health Noel Browne to introduce free maternity care for all mothers and free healthcare for all children up to the age of sixteen. However conservative forces in the Catholic Church, especially Archbishop of Dublin John Charles McQuaid, viewed the scheme as state interference with the family and feared the plan would lead eventually to birth control and abortion. The controversy resulted in the resignation of Browne and calling on an election.
PHOTO:
William Norton (1900-1963), Leader of the Labour Party 1932-1960, Tánaiste 1948-1951, 1954-1957.
The 1951 Election
Labour and National Labour reformed to fight the 1951 elections as a single party. However the results of the election were inconclusive. Labour lost three seats, returning 16 RDs, Fianna Fáil gained only one and Fine Gael gained eight. Fianna Fáil managed to form a minority government with the support of several independents including Noel Browne.
The 1954 Election
The de Valera government 1951-54 proved to be unstable and an election was called in 1954. Labour returned 19 TDs and Norton was once again Tánaiste in an Inter-Party Government. The 1954 Election also saw the election of Labour’s first female TD, Maureen O’Carroll.
PHOTO:
Maureen O’Carroll (1913-1964)
First female Labour TD elected 1954. She served as Labour Chief Whip 1954-1957.
The Second Inter-Party Government
Labour received four Ministerial posts in the new Government. Norton became Tánaiste and Minister for Industry and Commerce, James Everett became Minister for Justice, Michael Keys became Minister for Posts and Telegraphs and Brendan Corish became Minister for Social Welfare.
Although the new government was ambitious, international events such as the Suez Crisis and an economic downturn led to unrest within cabinet, especially between Minister for Finance Gerald Sweetman and William Norton and Brendan Corish. Despite the tensions that government began reforming economic policy, establishing the IDA and changing tax policy to attract investment and job creation.
The 1957 Election
Labour returned 12 TDs following the 1957 Election. Fianna Fáil formed a majority government. A lot of the work started by William Norton as Minister for Industry and Commerce during the economic downturn would be built upon by Seán Lemass, first as Minister for Industry and then as Taoiseach.
PHOTO:
Cabinet members during the Second Inter-Party Government (1954-1957)
Seated (left to right):
Seán MacEoin, Brendan Corish, William Norton, John A. Costello, Richard Mulcahy, Joseph Blowick, Jim Everett, James Dillon
Standing (left to right):
Gerald Sweetman, Liam Cosgrave, Tom O’Higgins, Pa O’Donnell
The Corish Leadership
New Leader, New Labour
Norton stood down as leader of the Labour Party on the 3rd of November 1960. He had been leader of the Labour Party for 28 years, serving as Tánaiste twice.His successor was Brendan Corish, the former Minister for Social Welfare.
Corish brought a new youthful enthusiasm to Labour. He set about the task of reorganising and rebuilding the Party. The leadership followed an independent stance in elections, focusing more on rebuilding the Party than ideas of Coalition government. This renewed Labour had immediate success, gaining four seats in the 1961 election and in 1965 gaining another four, returning 22 seats, the highest number since 1927.
Other developments saw the Workers’ Union of Ireland affiliated in 1965 and the ITGWU and ATGWU re-affiliate in 1968. These closer ties with the Trade Union movement were part of the policy to present a broader left wing alliance to challenge the dominance of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. This policy was expressed in the manifesto ‘The New Republic’ and adopted the ambitious slogan ‘the seventies will be socialist’.
PHOTO:
Brendan Corish addressing open air meeting, in front of slogan
‘THE SEVENTIES WILL BE SOCIALIST’
Caption:
Brendan Corish (1918-1990), Leader of the Labour Party 1960-1977, Tánaiste 1973-1977.
Labour entered the 1969 election full of ambition, which was signalled by running 99 candidates. Labour gained 1.6% in popular support but lost four seats.
The results of the 1969 election made it obvious to the Labour Party that to overturn the dominance of Fianna Fáil an alternative government must be presented to the public. At a special conference in 1970 a motion was passed which allowed the Party Leader and TDs to negotiate terms for a possible future coalition.
The 1972 EEC Referendum
In 1972 a referendum was put to the people on entry into the EEC. The Labour Party and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions opposed entry. They argued that our economy was too weak to accept the challenges of the common market and that we should pursue associate membership. The campaign was spearheaded by Justin Keating. The result was overwhelmingly in favour of joining, with just 17% opposed.
Despite its initial opposition to membership Labour went on to drive the European agenda, especially in the field of social policy where employment law, equal pay and health and safety legislation were just some of the European initiatives readily adopted by the Party.
POSTER:
The New Republic
Starry Plough, white stars on black, with green background.
Caption:
The New Republic speech made by Brendan Corish in 1969 set out the new socialist policies which Labour hoped would herald a new political order in Ireland.
“…but I believed the prime consideration determining the course was the belief which I and others insisted upon in public that the country needed a rest from turmoil and trouble, that there was need for a period of settlement, for a period of reconstruction, for a period of devoted national service …”
Thomas Johnson, 16th August 1927.
The 1973 Election
Labour fought the 1973 election on a joint platform with Fine Gael and gained one seat. Overall the alternative government gained five seats and a National Coalition that brought an end to 16 years of Fianna Fáil rule was formed.
The National Coalition
Labour gained five Ministerial posts, with Corish becoming Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Social welfare, Justin Keating Minister for Industry and Commerce, Michael O’Leary as Minister for Labour, James Tulley as Minister for Local Government, and Conor Cruise O’Brien as Minister for Posts and Telegraphs.
The government achieved much in its five years; it introduced labour law reforms including equal pay for women and unfair dismissal legislation. The Coalition built over 100,000 new local authority homes and reformed the tenant purchase scheme. On welfare, the Old Age Pension age was changed from 70 to 66. Deserted wives, unmarried mothers, prisoners’ wives and single women’s allowances were all introduced. The supplementary welfare allowance and the employment incentive schemes were introduced along with domiciliary care allowance for disabled children and the establishment of the Combat Poverty Agency.
PHOTO:
Frank Cluskey (1930-1989) Leader of the Labour Party 1997-1981.
1977-1981
Corish resigned as leader in June 1977 following the defeat in the General Election. Frank Cluskey succeeded with Michael O’Leary becoming deputy leader. The first test for the new leadership was the 1979 Local and European Elections. Labour lost seats in the locals but won four European seats, a massive victory for the Party.
The 1981 Election resulted in Labour retaining 15 seats. One major upset however was the loss of the Frank Cluskey seat in Dublin South. Michael O’Leary became the new leader of the Party.
PHOTO:
Labour candidates for the 1979 European Parliament elections.
Back (left to right): Michael D. Higgins, Jane Dillon Byrne, Michael O’Leary
Front (left to right): Eileen Desmond, Liam Kavanagh, John O’Connell
Labour entered a minority government with Fine Gael. The Coalition fell with the failure to pass the budget. John Bruton, the Minister of Finance, attempted to put VAT on children’s shoes. An election was called for February 1982. Labour returned 15 TDs but were unable to form a coalition. Fianna Fáil formed a minority government. This government was weak and was embroiled in scandal after scandal. It was during this time that Conor Cruise O’Brien created the term GUBU (grotesque, unbelievable, bizarre and unprecedented) to express the state of the current government. It was obvious to all that the Fianna Fáil minority government would collapse soon. Michael O’Leary sought to build an election strategy. At the party conference in October 1982, O’Leary proposed a motion to give the Parliamentary Party and the Administrative Council control over election strategy. Frank Cluskey added an amendment which called for any decision on coalition to be put before a special delegate conference. The amendment passed and Michael O’Leary resigned as Leader, left the Party and applied to join Fine Gael.
The Spring Years
The 1980s-1990s
Following the resignation of Michael O’Leary, Dick Spring became the new leader. Spring was similar to Corish, coming from a staunch Labour tradition. His father Dan had been a Labour TD from 1943 to 1981. Dick Spring had been elected in the 1981 Election taking his father’s seat. At 32 he was the youngest leader of the Labour Party. He had a immediate baptism of fire, for within two weeks of his election as leader a General Election had been called.
The second 1982 election was dominated by economic issues and the scandals involving the Fianna Fáil government. Labour gained one seat, returning 16 TDs and following a special conference Labour entered a Coalition Government with Fine Gael. Labour gained four Ministerial posts, with Spring appointed Tánaiste and Minister for the Environment, Barry Desmond as Minister for Health and Social Welfare, Liam Kavanagh as Minister for Labout and Frank Cluskey as Minister for Trade, Commerce and Tourism.
POSTER:
people matter most
picture of Dick Spring
Vote Labour, with Starry Plough, Red on Black background
Caption: Dick Spring, Leader of the Labour Party 1982-1997, Tánaiste 1982-1987, 1994-1997.
Labour in Government
The coalition was faced with many difficulties. The economic situation was dire, 240,000 people were unemployed, there was a lurch to the right with the founding of the Progressive Democrats and in the North, the troubles seemed to be stuck in a fatal stalemate. Domestically the introduction of water charges and the removal of subsidies on food caused difficulties for the grassroots of the Party. In 1983 former leader Frank Cluskey resigned from cabinet over government investment in the Dublin Gas Company without seeking government control. A stance which was later vindicated when Dublin Gas was taken into state ownership.
The Government also faced two divisive referenda, in 1983 on abortion and in 1986 on divorce. Both proposals divided the country, with Labour taking the brunt of the attacks for the conservative elements in Ireland. The 1983 Referendum was won by the pro-life side 64% to 33%. Similarly the 1986 Referendum was won by the conservative alliance 63% to 37%.
Despite these challenges, Labour achieved much in the 1982-1987 government.
The Health Service was maintained without the introduction of charges, family planning legislation was passed despite opposition from within government and from Fianna Fáil and the Health Bill. The Clinical Trials Bill and the Misuse of Drugs Bill were all introduced.
On Social Welfare, payments were kept in line with inflation, new child benefit schemes were introduced, the Children Care and Protection Bill was enacted, along with the Status of Children Bill.
On economics, the National Development Corporation was established, inflation was reduced from 21% to 3%, tax evasion and tax avoidance legislation were introduced, including the DIRT scheme. The National Lottery was established and Dublin Gas was taken into public ownership.
On housing, new grants were introduced to help home improvements, local authority rent was frozen for a three year period and over 100,000 new homes were built.
One of the most important achievements of Labour in coalition was the signing of the Anglo-Irish Agreement in 1985. The Tánaiste played a major role in the negotiations, bringing about a major step in the long road to peace.
The 1987 Election
The Labour Party withdrew from government in January 1987 following Fine Gael proposals for extensive cuts in public spending. The campaign was fought mainly on economic issues, with Northern Ireland also playing a part. The election saw the return of Fiann Fáil to government, forming a minority government. The 1987 election was important because of the breakthrough for the newly formed Progressive Democrats, who, with 16 seats, surpassed Labour to become the third biggest party in the state. Labour lost four seats, returning 12 TDs with 6.5% of the vote. Over the coming years Labour, and Dick Spring in particular, would attack the right-of-centre policies advocated by both Fianna Fáil and the PDs. Spring’s reputation for integrity, straight-talking and reform seized the public imagination and Labour would go from strength to strength.
The 1989 Election
The election of 1989 called by Charles Haughey was a political opportunity which backfired on Fianna Fáil. With high opinion poll rating, the plan was to call a snap election in order to gain a majority government. The actual result was a disaster for Fianna Fáil. In the end Haughey broke one of the key principles of Fianna Fáil and entered coalition with the Progressive Democrats.
The 1990 Presidential Election
For the first time, Labour announced that it would nominate a candidate for the Presidential election. Two candidates were pushed from opposite wings of the Party. From the left, a group led by Micharl D. Higgins supported Noel Browne. The leadership under Dick Spring favoured former Senator Mary Robinson.
Robinson was the eventual nominee and also gained the support of the Workers Party. The 1990 campaign was one of the most turbulent elections ever experienced in Ireland. The Fianna Fáil nominee and then Tánaiste Brian Lenihan was involved in a major scandal which resulted in his dismissal as Tánaiste during the campaign. With Lenihan struggling in the polls, his former cabinet colleague, Pádraig Flynn, launched a scandalous attack on Mary Robinson, an attack which backfired. Robinson’s positive message of renewal and reform inspired voters and the campaign marked a key turning point in the development of modern Ireland.
Robinson finished in second place, behind Lenihan, on the first count. However she achieved 75% of the Fine Gael candidate Austin Currie’s transfers, winning on the final count, 52% to 46% over Lenihan.
Robinson was the first female President of Ireland and the first President not nominated by Fianna Fáil.
POSTER:
Mary Robinson
A President with a Purpose
Caption: Mary Robinson, President of Ireland, 1990-1997
“I want to be a President for all the people. Because I was elected by men and women of all parties and none … who … voted for a new Ireland, and above all by mná na hÉireann, who instead of rocking the cradle rocked the system …”
Mary Robinson 9th November 1990.
The 1992 Election
The 1992 election came at the perfect time for Labour. Coming off the back of a victorious Presidential election, Labour proposed a radical agenda focusing on trust in politics and justice in economics. The manifesto put forward a vision of a modern, liberal, fair Republic and the public adopted Labour’s message. The opinion polls seemed to echo this, with Fianna Fáil looking set to be kicked out of government and replaced with a ‘Rainbow Government’ of Fine Gael, Labour and the newly formed Democratic Left. There was even talk of a Labour led coalition with Spring as Taoiseach.
Labour returned 17 new TDs bringing in a total of 33 seats, the best result ever for the Party. The ‘Spring Tide’ as it became known saw Labour holding the balance of power.
PHOTO:
The Labour Parliamentary Party attending a pre-Dáil meeting in Dublin following the 1992 ‘Spring Tide’ election.
The Government of 1992-1994
The results of the 1992 election put Labour in the driving seat, mathematically they could not join with Fine Gael and Democratic Left and form the ‘Rainbow Government’ which was much talked about in the media before the election, so the only options were to form a coalition with Fianna Fáil or call another General Election. At a special delegate conference delegates backed a coalition with Fianna Fáil.
Labour achieved six Ministerial positions; Dick Spring becoming Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Niamh Bhreathnach as Minister for Education, Michael D. Higgins as Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht, Brendan Howlin as Minister for Health, Ruairí Quinn as Minister for Enterprise and Employment, and Mervyn Taylor as Minister for Equality and Law Reform.
The following years would witness one of the Party’s most successful periods in government. Divorce was introduced following a successful referendum campaign, ethics in public office legislation, and electoral reform was enacted, and freedom of information law was passed. Dick Spring, as Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, was central to negotiations which resulted in the Downing Street Declaration in December 1993 and led to the IRA and loyalist ceasefires in 1994.
Fianna Fáil’s inability to live up to the principles of trust necessary for a partnership government led to the collapse of the coalition in November 1994.
The Rainbow Government 1994-1997
Immediately following the collapse of the Fianna Fáil-Labour Coalition, Dick Spring entered into negotiations with Fine Gael and Democratic Left. In December 1994 the Rainbow Coalition was formed. It was the first time that a new government had been formed in Ireland without calling an election. Labour kept its six ministers with Spring resuming his position as Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Ruairí Quinn becoming Labour’s first Minister for Finance. Labour’s dominant input into fiscal and economic policy in the coming years would herald a transformation in the Irish economy. Employment expanded rapidly, investment increased and Quinn delivered the first surplus in the 1997 budget. Quinn introduced Ireland’s 12.5% corporation tax regime, a catalyst for foreign direct investment and indigenous economic growth and also concluded the Stability and growth Pact at European level which proposed a framework for sustained economic development.
POSTER:
PARTNERSHIP THAT WORKS
Left to right: Dick Spring, Proinsias de Rossa, John Bruton
The 1997 Election
An election was called for 6 June 1997, with the coalition fighting a joint campaign to remain in power. The alternative was a possible coalition of Fianna Fáil and the Progressive democrats.
Despite the Party’s huge achievements in government the election saw Labour retain just 17 seats.
The Opposition Years
Following the resignation of Spring as Leader, Ruairí Quinn was elected as the 8th leader of the Labour Party. Immediately Quinn sought to build a broader left wing Party. Following negotiations in 1999 with Democratic Left, the two parties agreed to merge. Ruairí Quinn remained as Party Leader with Proinsias de Rossa taking up the role of Party President.
The new Fianna Fáil coalition was immediately thrown into turmoil with the resignation of a senior minister and serious allegations of corruption were madder. Quinn led Labour’s defence of high standards and integrity in public life as the scale of wrongdoing by politicians of other parties became apparent. Despite Labour’s positive agenda for a different society the 2002 election failed to provide a breakthrough.
The election saw Fianna Fáil returned to office and Pat rabbitte TD won the first one-member-one-vote leadership contest held by the Party after Quinn resigned the leadership. Liz McManus TD was elected Deputy Leader.
PHOTO:
Ruairí Quinn, Leader of the Labour Party 1997-2002, and Pat Rabbitte, Leader of the Labour Party 2002-2007.
Under Rabbitte, Labour pursued the mistakes of the Fianna Fáil government. Reform of the Gardaí was championed, Labour’s commitment to radical healthcare reform was advanced and reforming legislation on whistleblowers and lobbyists was proposed. In advance of the election in 2007 Labour formed a pact with Fine Gael, but again Fianna Fáil returned to power. Following the election, Eamonn Gilmore TD was unanimously elected Party Leader and Joan Burton TD elected Deputy Leader.
2007-2011
The economic situation of the country changed dramatically between 2007 and early 2008. The Celtic Tiger economy which was driven by an engrossed property bubble began to slow down. This was exaggerated with the global economic recession and the discovery of grave mismanagement in the domestic banking system. This banking crisis was further complicated with the Bank Guarantee of September 2008.
From this point onwards, the economy of the state spiralled further out of control, with debt levels rising and the property market crashing. The scandal at nglo-Irish Bank would be the breaking point for the State and in November 2010 Ireland was forced into an IMF, ECB and EU Bailout programme.An election was called for February 2011.
Jobs, Reform, Fairness
The election of 2011 provided an earthquake to the Irish political structures. Labour entered the race with the ambition that it could lead the next Government. The early opinion polls showed that Labour was equally as popular as Fine Gael and that Eamon Gilmore was by far the most popular leader.
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Labour Leader Eamon Gilmore with some of Labour’s female candidates at the launch of the 2011 General Election campaign.
The election provided the greatest electoral success for Labour, winning 17 new seats returning 37 TDs and becoming the second largest party in the state. Negotiations began immediately between Labour and Fine Gael on the formation of a government.
Labour took up five ministerial positions with Eamon Gilmore becoming Tánaiste and minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Joan Burton as Minister for Social Protection, Pat rabbitte as Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural resources, Brendan Howlin as Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, and Ruairí Quinn as Minister for Education.
2011 Presidential Election
Following on from their fantastic general election result, Labour entered the Presidential race full of confidence. They nominated their current Party President and former Minister Michael D. Higgins to contest the race.
The election was one of the most open in the history of the state, with seven candidates and huge shifts in the opinion polls.
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Presidential Election 2011
Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland
In a remarkable campaign, driven by Michael D.’s belief in citizenship, creativity, international solidarity and human rights, he was elected President in October 2011, securing more than one million votes during the count. He will be a President who will make us proud.
The goals that inspired Connolly, Larkin and O’Brien and other progressive forces in Irish politics 100 years ago are still the goals that inspire Ireland as it prepares for its second century of progress.
Speaking in February of 2012, Tánaiste and Labour Leader Eamon Gilmore said:
“This is a difficult time for Irish people. What we have to do as a country is not easy. But it does have a purpose. Our aim is to restore our economy. To create jobs. To ensure that there are opportunities for our young people, so that they can live and work in their own country again. To learn the lessons of the past, and to go on to build the society that our children deserve. That ultimately is our goal – an Ireland worthy of its people.”
Labour Party Centenary Fund to Restore
THE STARRY PLOUGH
The Starry Plough flag made its first public appearance with the Irish Citizen Army on 5th April 1914 in Dublin. It is said to have been designed by William H. Megahy, a heraldic designer and craftsman who taught in the Dublin Metropolitan School of Art at Kildare Street.
It was described as a unique and beautiful design, comprised of a stylised agricultural plough, superimposed with a representation of the constellation Ursa Major, the Great Bear or the Plough of the Heavens – all on a green field bordered by a gilt fringe.
During the 1916 Rising from his position in the GPO, James Connolly sent the Starry Plough across O’Connell Street to be flown over the Imperial Hotel (now part of Cleary’s Store). The hotel, owned by William Martin Murphy, had played a key role in the 1913 Lockout and Jim Larkin had addressed the striking workers from its balcony before being arrested.
The flag disappeared in the aftermath of the Rising, feared destroyed in the fires that engulfed O’Connell Street. However, it was acquired by the National Museum of Ireland in 1955 from Mr T.A. Williams who, as a Lieutenant of 9th Reserve Cavalry Regiment of the British Army, had taken the flag as a war trophy.
The flag is now in poor condition as a result of damage suffered during the Rising and the ravages of time. The Labour Party is committed to cooperating with the National Museum of Ireland to ensure the full restoration of this iconic and unique symbol of the Labour Movement in Ireland.
We will be seeking donations from members and supporters to ensure that the flag is restored to its full glory as part of the Labour Party’s centenary celebrations.
Sean O'Brien, reads his poem Another Country about the year 1985.
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