Early Political Career
In the 1979 European Parliament elections Dukes stood as a Fine Gael candidate in the Munster constituency. He was on course to be elected thanks to strong farming support until the entry of farming leader T. J. Maher as an independent candidate. Maher subsequently topped the poll.
He stood again for Fine Gael in the 1981 general election in the expanded constituency of Kildare, where he won a seat in the 22nd Dáil. On his first day in the Dáil he was appointed Minister for Agriculture by the Taoiseach, Garret FitzGerald, becoming one of only five TD's so appointed. He held this seat for 21 years.
This minority Fine Gael–Labour Party coalition government collapsed in February 1982 over controversial budget reforms, but returned to power with a working majority in December of that year. Dukes was again called into the cabinet becoming Minister for Finance less than two years into his Dáil career.
He faced a difficult task as Finance Minister at this time. Ireland was heavily in debt while unemployment and emigration were high. Many of Fine Gael's ambitious plans had to be deferred while the Fine Gael–Labour Party coalition disagreed on how to solve the economic crisis. The challenge of addressing the national finances was made difficult by electoral arithmetic and a lack of support from the opposition Fianna Fáil party led by Charles Haughey.
Dukes remained in the Department of Finance until the withdrawal of the Labour Party members from the government in 1986. As part of the subsequent reshuffle, he was appointed Minister for Justice.
Read more about this topic: Alan Dukes
Famous quotes containing the words early, political and/or career:
“Franklin said once in one of his inspired flights of malignity—
Early to bed and early to rise
Make a man healthy and wealth and wise.
As if it were any object to a boy to be healthy and wealthy and wise on such terms.”
—Mark Twain [Samuel Langhorne Clemens] (1835–1910)
“What drivel it all is!... A string of words called religion. Another string of words called philosophy. Half a dozen other strings called political ideals. And all the words either ambiguous or meaningless. And people getting so excited about them they’ll murder their neighbours for using a word they don’t happen to like. A word that probably doesn’t mean as much as a good belch. Just a noise without even the excuse of gas on the stomach.”
—Aldous Huxley (1894–1963)
“He was at a starting point which makes many a man’s career a fine subject for betting, if there were any gentlemen given to that amusement who could appreciate the complicated probabilities of an arduous purpose, with all the possible thwartings and furtherings of circumstance, all the niceties of inward balance, by which a man swings and makes his point or else is carried headlong.”
—George Eliot [Mary Ann (or Marian)