Michael Healy-Rae

Michael Healy-Rae TD
Teachta Dála
Incumbent
Assumed office February 2016
Constituency	Kerry
In office February 2011 – February 2016
Constituency	Kerry South
Personal details
Born	(1967-01-11) 11 January 1967 Kilgarvan, Kerry, Ireland
Nationality	Irish United States
Political party	Independent
Religion	Roman Catholicism

Michael Healy-Rae (born 11 January 1967) is an Irish independent politician. He was elected at the 2011 general election to the 31st Dáil Éireann as a Teachta Dála (TD) for Kerry South.^[1] Prior to entering national politics, he was involved in local politics in County Kerry and pursued business interests.^[2]

Family life

He is the youngest son of Jackie Healy-Rae, who was a TD for Kerry South from 1997 to 2011, and a brother of Danny Healy-Rae who is also a TD. His mother, Julie Healy, was born in Wilmington, Delaware, but grew up in New York City.^[3]

Local politics

Healy-Rae is a former member of Kerry County Council, and was first elected to the Council at the 1999 local elections, representing the Killorglin electoral area.^[4] He retained his seat with an increased vote at the 2004 local elections.^[4][5]

Reality television

In Autumn 2007, Michael Healy-Rae took part in the reality television show on RTÉ called Celebrities Go Wild set in the "unforgiving landscapes" of Connemara. He emerged as the winner having received the largest number of votes from the "viewing public". In June 2011 news broke of a voting scandal, for which journalist Senan Molony received the award for "Scoop of the Year" at the National Newspapers of Ireland's Journalism Awards.^[6][7] It was revealed that Healy-Rae had received 3,636 votes from a phone in Leinster House at a cost of €2,600 to the Irish taxpayer, the premium-rate calls being charged on a tariff designed to raise money for charity.^[8] Only limited information was available as to how the calls were made. Speculation that an automated dialler had been employed, was discounted by the Irish Independent which suggested they were made over 31 hours using "redial" .^[9] The Ceann Comhairle Seán Barrett described it as "an outrageous abuse of facilities", while the Taoiseach Enda Kenny said the money spent on the calls should be paid back.^[10] On 29 June 2011, Healy-Rae said that while he was not involved in the calls, he would pay the money back.^[10]

National politics

Healy-Rae was elected in the Kerry South constituency at the 2011 general election when his father Jackie retired from national politics. He, like fellow independents Michael Lowry and Noel Grealish, was not a member of the Technical group in the 31st Dáil. He missed two-thirds of votes in his first Dáil term, despite being signed in for his expenses on each day a vote was taken.^[11]

Healy-Rae was appointed to the board of the Citizens' Information Board in April 2009. He was asked twice to resign his position from the board because of a conflict of interest between his subsequent membership of the Dáil and his membership of a body advising the Minister for Social Protection. After he refused to resign, the Minister dismissed him in July 2011.^[12][13]

On 9 December 2011, having earlier participated in a debate on social welfare, he took ill at Leinster House and was advised to leave the Dáil chamber. Health minister James Reilly, a medical doctor, tended to him outside the chamber, he was brought from Leinster House on a stretcher, placed in an ambulance and rushed to St. James's Hospital.^[14][15]

His political platform includes opposition to tighter controls on drinking and driving.^[16] His father and brother have also expressed similar views on such legislation.^[17] In January 2012, Healy-Rae proposed changing Ireland's number plate system so that the supposedly unlucky number 13 would be dropped for the year 2013 to "save" the Irish car industry.^[18][19]

Healy-Rae has raised The Hum in Dáil Éireann after witnessing it himself while meeting some of his constituents who were "nearly gone out of their minds" with it. The official response he received, was described by Healy-Rae as "away with the fairies gobbledygook."^[20]

He topped the poll in Kerry at the 2016 general election and brought his brother Danny to the Dáil with him. This was the occasion of the first election of two siblings from the same constituency to the lower house of Ireland's parliament.^[21] A short while later, on the evening of 20 March 2016, Michael Healy-Rae experienced being unintentionally "tossed around by a cow" who was after calving in a shed at his farm near Kilgarvan. He was taken to hospital with his injuries.^[22]

References