Michael Bell | |
|---|---|
| Teachta Dála | |
| In office November 1982 – May 2002 | |
| Constituency | Louth |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1936-10-01)1 October 1936 County Louth, Ireland |
| Died | 20 May 2011(2011-05-20) (aged 74) County Louth, Ireland |
| Party | Labour Party |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Ireland |
| Branch/service |  Army Reserve |
| Years of service | 1954–1983 |
| Rank |  Quartermaster |
Michael Bell (1 October 1936 – 20 May 2011) was anIrishLabour Party politician.[1] Bell was first elected toDáil Éireann as aTeachta Dála (TD) for theLouth constituency at theNovember 1982 general election and retained his seat until losing it at the2002 general election.[2] He was a trade union official before entering politics. He served on Drogheda Corporation andLouth County Council and was mayor ofDrogheda between 1983 and 1984. He died in May 2011.[3]
His wife, Betty, served on Louth County Council with him from 1991-99 having been also elected for the party in the Drogheda area. Their nephew, Paul, twice served asCathaoirleach of Louth County Council and also as Mayor of Drogheda and is currently a member of theLabour Court.
Bell served with theLocal Defence Force (FCÁ) for 29 years, in which he completed a full-time stint on theIrish border between 1969 and 1970 duringThe Troubles as a seniorNCO and had overseen the care of 1,100 Northern Irish refugees atGormanston Camp inCounty Meath.[4][5]
It was as a result of his years of service on the Border that prompted Bell to consider suing the state for deafness to his ears. This prompted considerable embarrassment within the Labour Party at the time of his suit against the Department of Defence as he was their Defence Spokesperson and he was asked to withdraw his case having threatened publicly to rejoinFianna Fáil at the time. It remains unclear if South Louth Fianna Fáil would have re-admitted the Deputy.[6]