The funeral of the former Fianna Fáil minister, senator and Trinity College economist Martin O’Donoghue, who has died aged 85, takes place in Dublin on Tuesday.
The Fianna Fáil leader Micheal Martin led tributes to Prof O’Donoghue at the weekend, describing him as “a true gentleman”.
“He was a committed public representative who had a long and distinguished career in national politics,” Mr Martin said.
Born in Dublin’s South Circular Road area, Prof O’Donoghue was the son of a coachbuilder. He left school at 14 with just a primary certificate and worked as a waiter in the famous Jammet’s restaurant before he entered Trinity College Dublin as a mature student while working in Dunlops tyre factory.
He took a first class degree, finishing top of his class, and later returned to Trinity as a lecturer.
He became an economic adviser to the then Taoiseach and Fianna Fáil leader Jack Lynch in the early 1970s and stood as a candidate in the Dun Laoghaire constituency in the 1977 general election, winning the fourth seat.
Fianna Fáil stood in that election on a manifesto build around expansionist economic proposals drawn up largely by Prof O’Donoghue, which included a pledge to abolish domestic rates.
With Mr Lynch returning to office with a large majority, Prof O’Donoghue was appointed minister in the newly-established Department of Economic Planning.
Though Fianna Fáil’s 1977 manifesto has been condemned in hindsight as reckless and unsustainable, contemporary commentary was more positive.
"So far, so good," noted Magill magazine in late 1977. "Everything is going according to plan in the manifesto schedule.
“The 20,000 jobs look like being created by mid-summer next year, domestic inflation is coming down thanks to falling commodity prices and potato and petrol surplus, and, with sterling strengthening, interest rates are dropping, stock exchange prices are rising, mortgage rates are corning down. And unemployment is beginning to fall.”
However, it transpired that many of these factors were related to benign international conditions, which soon evaporated.
The Government lacked the strength or will to control expenditure and borrowing. Within two years, Mr Lynch was gone, replaced by Charles Haughey, and Prof O’Donoghue was out of the cabinet.
As Fianna Fáil wrestled with itself over the leadership of Mr Haughey, Prof O’Donoghue returned briefly as Minister for Education in the 1982 Fianna Fáil Government, but failed to back Haughey in a leadership challenge and left Cabinet again.
He subsequently lost his seat in the following month’s general election. He was however elected to the Seanad, where he stayed until 1987.
Having left Fianna Fáil and becoming a supporter of the Progressive Democrats, he returned to academia after politics, lecturing in Trinity, and he was also appointed a director of the Central Bank, where he served until 2008.
He died peacefully surrounded by family at St Vincent’s Hospital in Dublin on Friday, July 20th.
He is survived by his wife Evelyn, children Audrey, Raphael and Tressan and his brother Tom.
His remains will be reposing at Fanagan’s Funeral Home, Lower Kimmage Road on Monday, July 23rd from 3-5pm.
Requiem mass takes place at the Church of St. Paul of the Cross, Mount Argus, Harold’s Cross, at 11.30am on Tuesday, July 24th.
