Former minister and MEP Gerry Collins dies aged 88
Former Irish government minister and MEP Gerry Collins has died at the age of 88. A prominent figure in Fianna Fáil, he served in multiple cabinet roles during the Haughey era before transitioning to the European Parliament.
Why it matters
Collins was a significant figure in Irish political history, representing a major political dynasty and serving during key decades of the state's development.
The former Fianna Fáil minister, TD and MEP Gerry Collins, who played a major role in Irish politics during the tumultuous Haughey years, has died. He was 88.
Collins was a TD for 30 years and served in several government departments, including stints in the Department of Justice and Department of Foreign Affairs.
He retired from the Dáil in 1997 to concentrate on his career as an MEP, having been elected to the European Parliament in 1994. He remained an MEP until 2004.
Collins was already a significant political figure by the time he was elected to the Dáil in 1967, having led the Kevin Barry Cumann at UCD and been assistant general secretary of Fianna Fáil.
He was quickly promoted, first as parliamentary secretary – as junior ministers were then called – and soon afterwards to the cabinet as minister for posts and telegraphs in 1970.
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