Mary Coughlan (politician) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mary Coughlan
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| Tánaiste | |
| In office 7 May 2008 – 9 March 2011 |
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| Taoiseach | Brian Cowen |
| Preceded by | Brian Cowen |
| Succeeded by | Eamon Gilmore |
| Deputy leader of Fianna Fáil | |
| In office 7 May 2008 – 31 January 2011 |
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| Leader |
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| Preceded by | Brian Cowen |
| Succeeded by | Mary Hanafin |
| Minister for Health and Children | |
| In office 20 January 2011 – 9 March 2011 |
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| Taoiseach | Brian Cowen |
| Preceded by | Mary Harney |
| Succeeded by | James Reilly (Health) Frances Fitzgerald (Children) |
| Minister for Education and Skills | |
| In office 23 March 2010 – 9 March 2011 |
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| Taoiseach | Brian Cowen |
| Preceded by | Batt O'Keeffe (Education and Science) |
| Succeeded by | Ruairi Quinn |
| Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment | |
| In office 7 May 2008 – 23 March 2010 |
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| Taoiseach | Brian Cowen |
| Preceded by | Micheál Martin |
| Succeeded by | Batt O'Keeffe (Enterprise, Trade and Innovation) |
| Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food | |
| In office 29 September 2004 – 7 May 2008 |
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| Taoiseach | Bertie Ahern |
| Preceded by | Joe Walsh (Agriculture and Food) |
| Succeeded by | Brendan Smith |
| Minister for Social and Family Affairs | |
| In office 17 June 2002 – 29 September 2004 |
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| Taoiseach | Bertie Ahern |
| Preceded by | Dermot Ahern (Social, Community and Family Affairs) |
| Succeeded by | Séamus Brennan |
| Minister of State | |
| 2001–2002 | Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands |
| Teachta Dála | |
| In office February 1987 – February 2011 |
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| Constituency | Donegal South-West |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 28 May 1965 Donegal, Ireland |
| Political party | Fianna Fáil |
| Spouse |
David Charlton
(m. 1995; died 2012) |
| Children | 2 |
| Parent |
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| Relatives | Clement Coughlan (uncle) |
| Education | Ursuline College Sligo |
| Alma mater | University College Dublin |
Mary Coughlan (born 28 May 1965) is an Irish former politician. She was a member of the Fianna Fáil party. She served as Tánaiste (Deputy Prime Minister) of Ireland from 2008 to 2011. She was also the Deputy leader of Fianna Fáil during that time.
Mary Coughlan held several important government jobs. These included Minister for Health and Children, Minister for Education and Skills, and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment. She also served as Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food. Before that, she was Minister for Social and Family Affairs. She started her ministerial career as a Minister of State for the Gaeltacht and the Islands.
She was a Teachta Dála (TD), which is a member of the Irish Parliament (Dáil Éireann). She represented the Donegal South-West area from 1987 to 2011.
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Early Life and Education
Mary Coughlan was born in Donegal Town in May 1965. Her father, Cathal Coughlan, was also a Fianna Fáil TD. He passed away in 1986 while still in office.
Mary went to Ballydevitt National School near Donegal Town. She then attended the Ursuline College in Sligo as a boarder. Later, she studied at University College Dublin (UCD). She earned a degree in Social Science. Before entering politics, she worked briefly as a social worker.
Starting a Political Career
Mary Coughlan grew up in a political family. She became interested in politics at a young age. She joined a local Fianna Fáil party group when she was 16.
Becoming a TD
Mary was first elected to Dáil Éireann in the 1987 general election. She became a TD for the Donegal South-West area. At just 21 years old, she was the youngest member of the 25th Dáil.
Her uncle, Clement Coughlan, was a TD until his death in 1983. Her father, Cathal Coughlan, was a TD from 1983 until his death in 1986. After her father's passing, Mary was chosen to fill his seat on the Donegal County Council in 1986. This helped launch her political journey.
For the first 13 years of her career, she worked as a regular TD. She served on several parliamentary committees. These included committees on tourism, sport, and the Irish language. She also chaired the Irish language committee.
Becoming a Minister of State
In February 2001, Mary Coughlan became a Minister of State. This role was in the Department of Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands. She was responsible for the Gaeltacht (Irish-speaking areas) and the Islands.
During her 16 months in this role, she worked on important laws. She helped get approval for a bill about official languages. This bill aimed to protect the language rights of citizens. She also updated laws to support Irish-speaking families building homes in the Gaeltacht. She helped connect islands, like Inishbofin Island, to the national electricity grid.
Cabinet Minister Roles
After the 2002 general election, Mary Coughlan was promoted to the cabinet. This meant she became a full government minister.
Minister for Social and Family Affairs (2002–2004)
She became Minister for Social and Family Affairs. In this role, she increased social welfare payments. She also expanded support for families. She created the Family Support Agency to help families and promote stable family life.
She introduced large increases in child benefits and pensions. She also set up Personal Retirement Savings Accounts. She established the Office of the Pensions Ombudsman. She gave more funding to the State's Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS).
Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (2004–2008)
In 2004, Mary Coughlan became Minister for Agriculture and Food. She was the first woman to hold this position in Ireland.
During her time, the last two sugar factories in Ireland closed. Farmers were unhappy with this decision. She also had to prepare for the possible spread of diseases like bird flu and foot-and-mouth disease. She worked on international trade talks to protect Irish farming.
Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (2008–2010)
In May 2008, Mary Coughlan became Tánaiste (Deputy Prime Minister). She also became Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment. This happened when Brian Cowen became Taoiseach (Prime Minister).
As Minister for Enterprise, she worked to improve business in Ireland. She encouraged retailers to lower prices to help consumers. She also worked to protect jobs, like those at a Dell facility in Limerick. She helped secure over €22 million in European funding for workers who lost their jobs. She also worked to strengthen company laws.
Minister for Education and Skills (2010–2011)
In March 2010, she became Minister for Education and Skills. She kept her role as Tánaiste. One of her first ideas was to support extra points for students who studied higher-level maths. She also improved the student grant application process.
In January 2011, she also took on the role of Minister for Health and Children.
End of Political Career
In the 2011 general election, Mary Coughlan lost her seat in the Dáil. This was a big change for her party, Fianna Fáil. It was the first time in history that Donegal South-West did not have a Fianna Fáil TD.
In 2022, Mary Coughlan returned to public life. She was appointed Chair of the National Conference on Women in Farming.
Views on Family Policy
During her time as Minister for Social and Family Affairs, Mary Coughlan worked on family policy. She introduced changes to social welfare laws in 2004. These changes clarified the meaning of 'spouse' in relation to benefits.
She also produced a report that looked at new definitions of 'the family'. This report suggested a more modern approach to the topic. This work helped shape the government's 2008 law on civil unions.
Personal Life
Mary Coughlan is a fluent Irish speaker.
In 1991, she married David Charlton, a police officer. They had two children, a son and a daughter. David Charlton passed away in 2012.
Mary Coughlan also served as the secretary for the St Naul's GAA club.
