Where is enda kenny from

Enda became Fine Gael Leader in and immediately embarked on a campaign to revitalise the Party, which bore fruit at every subsequent election. Fine Gael went on to become the biggest Irish Party in the European Parliament and in local government.

From Islandeady, outside Castlebar, Enda is a former primary school teacher. He has served in a wide variety of Party and Parliamentary positions during his time as a TD. He presided over a revolution in Irish tourism as the numbers visiting this country soared thanks to initiatives spearheaded by his Department. Enda divides his time between Mayo and Dublin — as well as constantly touring the country he visits every constituency in the country on a regular basis. A fan of Bruce Springsteen, Enda likes to hillwalk, play golf and cycle.

He climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in aid of three Mayo charities in , and regularly undertakes charity cycles. I have today written….

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We set these cookies and you may choose to withdraw your consent by opting out. We use some other cookies and their purposes are described below. He is a director of the Ireland-China Institute think tank. In , he was also appointed chairman of an advisory council to private equity group, VentureWave Capital. Please update your payment details to keep enjoying your Irish Times subscription.

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Subscriber Only. A public outcry led Mr Kenny's government to quickly reform the law - the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act legalised abortion in very limited circumstances. Two years later, the Republic of Ireland became the first country in the world to legalise same-sex marriage through a popular vote. Mr Kenny welcomed the result of the referendum, saying the Republic of Ireland was a "small country with a big message for equality" around the world.

But despite a seismic shift in attitudes to human rights and human relationships, skeletons of Catholic Ireland's past would continue to haunt his government. In March , it was confirmed that "significant quantities" of human remains had been found in a mass grave at a former mother and baby home in Tuam, County Galway.

The home for unmarried mothers was run by nuns between and , and high infant mortality and disease were features of such institutions. The taoiseach described the discovery as "truly appalling" and said the infants buried in unmarked graves had been treated like "some kind of sub-species". Mr Kenny, who was born in , is a practising Catholic who is married with three adult children.

Last year, it seemed Mr Kenny could be the first man in a century to lead Fine Gael into a once unthinkable coalition with its former foe. Fine Gael held the most seats, but it took four attempts over 70 days for parties to agree who would run the country.

Eventually, on 6 May , Mr Kenny was re-elected to lead a minority Fine Gael government , propped up by independent parliamentarians. He became the only Fine Gael taoiseach to be re-elected for a second term of government and the party hailed him as the most successful leader in its history. But the honeymoon was short-lived and within months, Mr Kenny was facing opposition from within his own ranks.

The controversy began when two whistleblowers made allegations of corruption over how officers were recording motoring offences. Ambitious Fine Gael ministers reportedly demanded the embattled taoiseach set out his timeframe for stepping down. Mr Kenny resisted, saying his priorities were dealing with the fall-out from Brexit and the growing crisis in the Northern Ireland peace process.

Stormont's devolved government collapsed in January over a green energy scandal , adding fuel to the fire of the already complicated Brexit negotiations. The taoiseach had campaigned against Brexit, warning it would create "serious difficulties" for Northern Ireland and border areas. After the UK voted to leave the EU, he was criticised for raising the possibility of a future poll on a united Ireland.

Mr Kenny's leadership had begun with a high-point in Anglo-Irish relations - the first visit of Queen Elizabeth to the Republic of Ireland.