Cian O'Callaghan | |
|---|---|
.jpg) O'Callaghan in 2024 | |
| Deputy leader of the Social Democrats | |
| Assumed office 1 July 2023 | |
| Teachta Dála | |
| Assumed office February 2020 | |
| Constituency | Dublin Bay North |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1979-05-07)7 May 1979 (age 46) Dublin, Ireland |
| Political party | Social Democrats |
| Other political affiliations |
|
| Education | Belvedere College |
| Alma mater | University College Dublin |
Cian O'Callaghan (born 7 May 1979) is an Irish politician who has been aTeachta Dála (TD) for theDublin Bay North constituency since the2020 general election.[1][2] He is the Housing spokesperson for theSocial Democrats and became deputy leader of the party in 2023.[3][4] He served as a member ofFingal County Council from 2009 to 2020, and was Ireland's first openly gay mayor.[5]
O'Callaghan is fromSutton, Dublin. He graduated with a MA in Politics and a Higher Diploma in Social Policy fromUniversity College Dublin (UCD).[6][7] During his time at UCD, O'Callaghan was active in student politics, becoming an officer in the Student's Union.[8]
O'Callaghan served as chair of the youth wing ofDemocratic Left, and served as co-chair ofLabour Youth following the merger of Democratic Left with Labour.[9]
O'Callaghan was elected toFingal County Council on his first attempt in2009, representingLabour, taking the second seat in theHowth-Malahide local electoral area. Following the results of the2011 Irish general election, O'Callaghan fiercely opposed Labour entering into a coalition government withFine Gael.[10]
In June 2012, he was elected as Mayor ofFingal, becoming the first openly gay mayor in the country's history.[5] During his time as mayor he highlighted the problems faced by homeowners in a number of newer developments in the Fingal area, where building materials contaminated withpyrite caused severe damage.[11] It was also during this period that O'Callaghan clashed with Labour leaderEamon Gilmore over a number of issues; O'Callaghan criticised Gilmore for placing Labour in a coalition with Fine Gael, for his stance on Irish neutrality and for his stance on the use ofShannon Airport by US military flights.[10]
During his time in Labour, O'Callaghan was considered to have been the political protege of Labour TDTommy Broughan.[10] Both Broughan and O'Callaghan were considered to be on the left-wing of the Labour Party in that period.[10]
In July 2013, O'Callaghan left the Labour Party, stating the impetus was "the introduction of two budgets in a row that actually increased income inequality by targeting people on low and middle incomes was deeply unjust".[12]
Running as an Independent candidate at the2014 local elections, O'Callaghan topped the poll in the Howth-Malahide local electoral area.[13]
O'Callaghan was a founding member of the Social Democrats when they launched the party in July 2015.[14] O'Callaghan stated his reason for joining the party was "because the party has a serious plan for the long term that will give people security in the areas of health, housing and employment.[10]
O'Callaghan contested the2016 general election for the Social Democrats inDublin Bay North and received 3,864 first preference votes, being eliminated on the 12th count.[13]
He was the Social Democrats candidate for the Dublin Bay North constituency at the2020 general election, receiving 6,229 first preference votes, and was elected, taking the third of five seats.[15][16] In doing so, O'Callaghan took up the seat of his former mentor Tommy Broughan, who had decided not to contest that year's election.[10] Joan Hopkins was co-opted to O'Callaghan's seat on Fingal County Council following his election to the Dáil.[17]
Following the election, O'Callaghan was named as the Social Democrats' spokesperson on Housing, International Affairs and Defence.[18]
As of 2020, O'Callaghan opposes any potential merger of the Social Democrats with the Labour Party. However, O'Callaghan believes that the left-wing parties in Irish politics should work broadly together.[10]
In June 2021 O'Callaghan accused the government of allowing "wild west" standards to develop in the building trade and urged them to correct course following the revelations that thousands of homes across the west coast of Ireland and in Dublin were crumbling because of the use of poor building materials such asmica andpyrite. O'Callaghan stated "We are going to be in a situation again, with the taxpayer picking up the bill, if the Government doesn't act in terms of building standards and construction material standards. In particular, we need to have very strong standards put in place, very strong regulation and very strong independent inspections. The Government is operating this kind of wild west on building standards and materials."[19]
In March 2022 O'Callaghan introduced a bill that would make it explicitly illegal for landlords to demand sex as a form of rent or to make any sort of advertising suggesting that sex would be accepted as a form of rent. The government said they would not oppose the measure.[20]
O'Callaghan has been calling on the Government to increase the number of affordable purchase homes[21]and tabled an amendment in the Dáil (which was ultimately voted down by Government) for the introduction of affordable housing zoning.[22] In June 2023, O'Callaghan criticised the Government's 1-billion-euro underspend from the 2022 housing budget and accusing the Taoiseach of 'dressing up failure as success' in relation to their housing delivery.[23] O'Callaghan described the lack of capital funding as 'hard to grasp' where there are record levels of homelessness, house prices and rents.[24]
O'Callaghan has called the levels of child homelessness a 'national disaster'.[25]
On 1 July 2023, it was announced that O'Callaghan had been appointed to the newly created role of deputy leader of the Social Democrats.[3][4]
At the2024 general election, O'Callaghan was re-elected to the Dáil. He is now the party's spokesperson on Finance; Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation.[26]
| Elections to theDáil | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Election | FPv | FPv% | Result | ||
| Social Democrats | Dublin Bay North | 2016 | 3,864 | 5.2 | Eliminated on count 12/15 | |
| Dublin Bay North | 2020 | 6,229 | 8.7 | Elected on count 14/14 | ||
| Dublin Bay North | 2024 | 9,738 | 14.9 | Elected on count 8/14 | ||
| Elections toFingal County Council | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Election | FPv | FPv% | Result | ||
| Labour | Howth–Malahide LEA | 2009 | 2,256 | 10.1 | Elected on count 10/10 | |
| Independent | Howth–Malahide LEA | 2014 | 2,868 | 16.2 | Elected on count 1/9 | |
| Social Democrats | Howth–Malahide LEA | 2019 | 2,717 | 13.8 | Elected on count 1/3 | |