FF leader acknowledges life 'devoted to public service'

FIANNA FÁIL leader Micheál Martin said former taoiseach Garret FitzGerald had “served the Irish people with great intelligence, decency and commitment in a lifetime devoted to public service.

“He was a hardworking politician of compassion and ability. He was a prolific journalist of insight and understanding. He was a brilliant academic of versatility and knowledge.”

Mr Martin said that as minister for foreign affairs and then taoiseach, he was a “politician who made an immense and lasting contribution to peace and reconciliation on this island”.

“Northern Ireland and the resolution of its problems was a lifetime passion and inside or outside politics, he did what he could to foster reconciliation”.

He added: “Garret was also a strong supporter of the EU and he was passionate about the benefits the European Union could bring to this country.”

The former minister recalled canvassing with Dr FitzGerald on the second Nice Treaty and said “his knowledge of the issues was still infallible and immense”.

He also said the former taoiseach “perhaps did not receive the credit he deserved” for the Tallaght strategy and “for moving beyond the log-jam of adversarial politics”.

Mr Martin was referring to Dr FitzGerald’s “visionary speech on his final day as taoiseach in 1987” when he said some “inspired words” and offered “his support for any legislative action required” by the incoming government to implement necessary budgetary provisions.

“In essence those words sowed the seeds for the Tallaght strategy that made an important contribution to Ireland getting beyond our last big financial crisis.”

Reflecting on Dr FitzGerald’s background, his parents’ involvement in the War of Independence and his father Desmond’s role as a minister in the first Free State government, Mr Martin said he “learnt about the value of public service and it was a lesson he did not forget.

“His entire career, indeed his life and times, have been devoted to an overarching commitment to public service. He worked day and night for the betterment of our people.”

The Fianna Fáil leader said that as a politician, academic or commentator, he “was always open and generous with his time. Unlike many intellectuals, he also had the gift of listening.”

A strong advocate of peace in Northern Ireland, the “resolution of its problems was a lifetime passion. “He was an implacable opponent of those who espoused violence as a means to a lasting political solution on this island and he worked sincerely towards building an Ireland free of conflict.”