Paddy Smith

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Paddy Smith (17 July 1901 – 18 March 1982) was a senior Irish politician. He served in a number of government positions under Éamon de Valera and Seán Lemass. He holds the distinction of being the longest-serving member of Dáil Éireann, having been a member for almost 54 years.

Born in Cootehill, County Cavan, Paddy Smith was involved in the 1916 Easter Rising and later in the Old IRA, during the War of Independence. An opponent of the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1922, Smith was first elected to the Dáil in the 1923 General Election at age 22 as a Republican TD for Cavan. He was also a founder-member of the Fianna Fáil political party in 1926. During his time as TD he served in the Cabinets of Éamon de Valera and Seán Lemass. He resigned from the government as Minister for Agriculture in 1964 in protest at the government's response to certain farming issues. Smith retired from politics at the 1977 General Election at the age of 76.

[edit] Political career

Political offices
Preceded by Patrick Little	Parliamentary Secretary to the Taoiseach 1939–1943	Succeeded by Eamonn Kissane
Preceded by Seán Moylan	Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Finance 1943–1947	Succeeded by Seán O'Grady
Preceded by James Ryan	Minister for Agriculture 1947–1948	Succeeded by James Dillon
Preceded by Michael Keyes	Minister for Local Government 1951–1954	Succeeded by Patrick O'Donnell
Preceded by Patrick O'Donnell	Minister for Local Government 1957	Succeeded by Neil Blaney
Preceded by Frank Aiken	Minister for Agriculture 1957–1964	Succeeded by Charles Haughey
	Father of the Dáil 1973–1977	Succeeded by Liam Cosgrave

This article is partially based on the article with the same name on http://www.irelandinformationguide.com, licensed under GFDL.

This page incorporates information from the Oireachtas Members Database