Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs: Meaning (information, definition, explanation, facts)

The Minister for Foreign Affairs is one of the most important ministerial positions in the Irish cabinet. The current Minister for Foreign Affairs is Brian Cowen. He has overall responsibility for the conduct of Ireland's relations with other States. The Minister is assisted by two Ministers of State: Dick Roche who has reponsibility for European Affairs, and Tom Kitt who has special responsibiltity for Overseas Development & Human Rights. Within the Department there are a number of a number of divisions:

• Anglo-Irish Division - deals with Anglo-Irish relations and Northern Ireland.
• Cultural Division - administers Ireland's Cultural Relations Programme.
• European Union Division - coordinates Ireland's approach within the EU.
• Passport and Consular Division - is responsible for the issuing of passports to Irish citizens.
• Political Division - is responsible for international political issues and manages Ireland's participation in the EU's Common Foreign and Security Policy.
• Protocol Division - is responsible for the organisation and management of visits of VIPs to Ireland and of visits abroad by the President.

List of Ministers for Foreign Affairs

From 1922-1971 the minister with responsibility for foreign affairs bore the title: Minister for External Affairs. Since 1971 the title has been Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Footnotes

1. Eamon de Valera, who was head of government (President of the Executive Council until 1937, renamed Taoiseach in 1937) served as his own foreign minister.
2. When Garret FitzGerald formed a government in mid 1981 he announced that he would be appointing James Dooge to be a senator and once in office would make him minister. However as the appointment could not be made until Seanad Éireann's general election had taken place (which would be a few weeks), in the interim the Minister for Trade, Commerce and Tourism, John M. Kelly, would act as minister.
3. When Labour withdrew from cabinet in early 1987, a new interim cabinet, made up simply of the outgoing Fine Gael ministers, was formed. Peter Barry continued on as Foreign Minister in that shortlived Fine Gael cabinet.

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