Micheal Martin was born the third of five children in the Turner’s Cross area of Cork on August 1, 1960, to Paddy and Eileen (Eileen “Lana” Corbett) Martin. Paddy, a former international boxer, worked as a bus conductor.
Micheal Martin.
He was educted at Criost Ri school and graduated from University College, Cork, with a Masters in political history. At college he was a prominent in Ogra Fianna Fáil, the youth wing of the party, and later serving as national chairman of Ogra. He met his is wife, Mary O’Shea, while studying at UCC. She was previously a Fianna Fáil national youth organiser and they had five children, one of whom, Ruairi, died in infancy while their youngest daughter Leana died of a heart condition in October, 2010.
He worked as a secondary school teacher until elected to Dail Eireann in 1989. His local constituency operation in Cork South-Central has been compared to that of Bertie Ahern in Dublin Central: very personalised and based on family members like his twin-brother Paudie, older brother Seán, Cllr Terry Shannon and businessman Humphrey Murphy.
He was Lord Mayor of Cork from 1992 to 1993. He is a former chairman of the Oireachtas all party committee on the Irish language, and has served on Dáil committees dealing with crime, finance and general affairs.
Micheál Martin was appointed Minister for Foreign Affairs in May, 2008, after Brian Cowen succeeded Bertie Ahern as Taoiseach. Prior to this he was Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, from September, 2004, to May, 2008, Minister for Health, 2000 to 2004, and Minister for Education and Science, June 1997 to January 2000.
As Minister for Health and Children, Micheal Martin pioneered the introduction of the smoking ban in Ireland, making it the first country in the world to implement comprehensive smoke-free legislation in all workplaces and, controversially, pubs. He was responsible for the abolition of the health boards and establishment of the Health Service Executive (HSE). He deregulated the country’s pharmacies in January, 2002.
Detractors point to the large number of reports he commissioned as Minister on various aspects of the health services as evidence of his indecision. A major controversy over illegal charging in nursing homes erupted following his tenure. Martin defended himself by claiming he was not properly briefed and that he had not seen a file on the matter.
When he was Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, he scrapped the anti-competitive Groceries Order which had banned stores engaging in below-cost selling and restricted competition in the grocery trade.
In 2006, he introduced new legislation protecting consumers from unscrupulous trading practices such as pyramid selling, persistent cold-calling and making false claims about goods for sale. He was also responsible for devising the Enterprise Strategy Group action plan and increasing the national minimum wage.
Since becoming Minister for Foreign Affairs, one of the first issues Micheal Martin had to deal with was the Lisbon Treaty referendum. While the overwhelming majority of Government and Opposition parties were supportive of a Yes vote, the electorate rejected the Treaty. In December 2008, EU leaders agreed on assurances to pave the way for a second referendum which was passed in 2009.
In 2009 the Collins Press published his masters thesis as a book: Freedom to Choose: Cork and Party Politics in Ireland 1918-1932.
Micheal Martin has been critical as Irish Foreign Minister of the blockade of Gaza, particularly since being denied access to the area in 2009. He wrote to Spain (as President of the EU) to suggest that the body send a team of Foreign Ministers to the area in 2010. He made his first visit there himself in February, 2010, on a one-day humanitarian mission through the Egyptian border. In doing so, he became the first Western Foreign Minister to visit Gaza since Hamas took control in 2007. While in Gaza, he toured hospitals and schools.
On January 26, 2011, Micheal Martin was elected leader of Fianna Fail following the resignation of Brian Cowan who, however, remained on as Taoiseach pending a general election.