Bairbre de Brún
Encyclopedia
Bairbre de Brún is an Irish
politician and Member of the European Parliament
, representing Northern Ireland
.
, Dublin on 10 January 1954, de Brún began her political career as a member of the National Committee Against the H-Blocks
& Armagh Gaol in the late 1970s and early 1980s, focusing heavily on the treatment of women in Armagh Gaol. Bairbre de Brún became an early member of Sinn Féin
's Ard Chomhairle (High Council) and in 1998 became an MLA
in the regional government, representing West Belfast. She was Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety.
By profession, de Brún was a teacher and taught in the Irish-medium
education sector in west Belfast
. She was also a French
and German
teacher and is noted for her devotion to the Irish language
. She has lived in the Andersonstown
area of Belfast
since the early 1980s. She is a fluent Irish speaker and an expert in human rights
and equality issues. De Brún is also a member of the Sinn Féin negotiating team and traveled internationally on numerous occasions to promote the Irish peace process.
She is a member of the Environment and Petitions Committee in the European Parliament
and a substitute member of the Regional Development Committee. Following the 2004 Euro elections she was one of two Sinn Féin MEP
s and the first Sinn Féin politician to represent Northern Ireland
in the European Parliament. She sits with the European United Left - Nordic Green Left. She topped the poll in the Northern Ireland constituency
of the European Parliament in the 2009 European elections
, resulting in a first for a nationalist
or republican
party.
She has also been a strong supporter of the Irish language and its use globally, and is one of the only MEPs to currently use Irish as her priority language, rarely making speeches within the parliament in English.
Source: BBC News
Irish people
The Irish people are an ethnic group who originate in Ireland, an island in northwestern Europe. Ireland has been populated for around 9,000 years , with the Irish people's earliest ancestors recorded having legends of being descended from groups such as the Nemedians, Fomorians, Fir Bolg, Tuatha...
politician and Member of the European Parliament
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...
, representing Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
.
Political work
Born in TerenureTerenure
Terenure is a mainly residential suburb of Dublin, Ireland, largely in the administrative area of Dublin City Council but with parts in the administrative county of South Dublin County .-Location and transport:...
, Dublin on 10 January 1954, de Brún began her political career as a member of the National Committee Against the H-Blocks
1981 Irish hunger strike
The 1981 Irish hunger strike was the culmination of a five-year protest during The Troubles by Irish republican prisoners in Northern Ireland. The protest began as the blanket protest in 1976, when the British government withdrew Special Category Status for convicted paramilitary prisoners...
& Armagh Gaol in the late 1970s and early 1980s, focusing heavily on the treatment of women in Armagh Gaol. Bairbre de Brún became an early member of Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
's Ard Chomhairle (High Council) and in 1998 became an MLA
Member of the Legislative Assembly (Northern Ireland)
Member of the Legislative Assembly is a representative elected by the voters to the Northern Ireland Assembly in Northern Ireland.- About :...
in the regional government, representing West Belfast. She was Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety.
By profession, de Brún was a teacher and taught in the Irish-medium
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
education sector in west Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
. She was also a French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
teacher and is noted for her devotion to the Irish language
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
. She has lived in the Andersonstown
Andersonstown
Andersonstown is a suburb of Belfast, Northern Ireland.It is overshadowed by the Black Mountain and Divis Mountain and contains a mixture of public and private housing. It is largely populated by the Irish nationalist and Roman Catholic community...
area of Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
since the early 1980s. She is a fluent Irish speaker and an expert in human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
and equality issues. De Brún is also a member of the Sinn Féin negotiating team and traveled internationally on numerous occasions to promote the Irish peace process.
She is a member of the Environment and Petitions Committee in the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
and a substitute member of the Regional Development Committee. Following the 2004 Euro elections she was one of two Sinn Féin MEP
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...
s and the first Sinn Féin politician to represent Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
in the European Parliament. She sits with the European United Left - Nordic Green Left. She topped the poll in the Northern Ireland constituency
Northern Ireland (European Parliament constituency)
Northern Ireland is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects three MEPs using the Single Transferable Vote, the only United Kingdom constituency to do so.- Members of the European Parliament :- 2009 :...
of the European Parliament in the 2009 European elections
European Parliament election, 2009 (United Kingdom)
The European Parliament election was the United Kingdom's component of the 2009 European Parliament election, the voting for which was held on Thursday 4 June 2009, coinciding with the 2009 local elections in England. Most of the results of the election were announced on Sunday 7 June, after...
, resulting in a first for a nationalist
Irish nationalism
Irish nationalism manifests itself in political and social movements and in sentiment inspired by a love for Irish culture, language and history, and as a sense of pride in Ireland and in the Irish people...
or republican
Irish Republicanism
Irish republicanism is an ideology based on the belief that all of Ireland should be an independent republic.In 1801, under the Act of Union, the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland merged to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland...
party.
She has also been a strong supporter of the Irish language and its use globally, and is one of the only MEPs to currently use Irish as her priority language, rarely making speeches within the parliament in English.
European Parliament elections, 2009
| Party | Candidate | Seats | Loss/Gain | First Preference Votes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | % of vote | ||||||
| Bairbre de Brún | 1 | 0 | 126,184 | 25.8 | |||
| Diane Dodds Diane Dodds Diane Dodds is a Democratic Unionist Party politician from Northern Ireland, and a Member of the European Parliament for the Northern Ireland constituency.-Career:... |
1 | 0 | 88,346 | 18.1 | |||
| Jim Nicholson Jim Nicholson (UK politician) James Frederick "Jim" Nicholson is a Northern Ireland Ulster Unionist Party politician, who is currently a Member of the European Parliament .-Career:... |
1 | 0 | 82,892 | 17.0 | |||
| Alban Maginness Alban Maginness Alban Maginness is a Nationalist politician in Northern Ireland.Maginness was born in Holywood, County Down, Northern Ireland. He completed his secondary education at St. Malachy's College, Belfast. He then attended the New University of Ulster and subsequently Queen's University of Belfast where... |
0 | 0 | 78,489 | 16.1 | |||
| Jim Allister Jim Allister James Hugh "Jim" Allister, QC is a Northern Ireland Unionist politician and senior barrister. He is the leader of the Traditional Unionist Voice political party, serving as MLA in the Northern Ireland Assembly, where he represents Antrim North.He was formerly a member of the Democratic Unionist... |
0 | 0 | 66,197 | 13.5 | |||
| Ian Parsley | 0 | 0 | 26,699 | 5.5 | |||
| Steven Agnew | 0 | 0 | 15,764 | 3.2 | |||
| Turnout | 488,891 | 42.8 | |||||
Source: BBC News
European Parliament elections, 2004
| European Parliament election 2004: Northern Ireland | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate(s) | Seats | Loss/Gain | First Preference Votes | ||
| Number | % of vote | |||||
| Jim Allister Jim Allister James Hugh "Jim" Allister, QC is a Northern Ireland Unionist politician and senior barrister. He is the leader of the Traditional Unionist Voice political party, serving as MLA in the Northern Ireland Assembly, where he represents Antrim North.He was formerly a member of the Democratic Unionist... |
1 | 0 | 175,761 | 31.9 | ||
| Bairbre de Brún | 1 | 144,541 | 26.3 | |||
| Jim Nicholson Jim Nicholson (UK politician) James Frederick "Jim" Nicholson is a Northern Ireland Ulster Unionist Party politician, who is currently a Member of the European Parliament .-Career:... |
1 | 0 | 91,164 | 16.6 | ||
| Martin Morgan Martin Morgan Martin Morgan is a former Northern Irish politician for the Social Democratic and Labour Party .Married to Dympna, a double graduate from the Queen's University of Belfast and a qualified Master's Level Social Worker, Morgan was a political activist from his teenage years onwards.A former... |
0 | |||||
| 87,559 | 15.9 | |||||
| John Gilliland | 0 | 0 | 36,270 | 6.6 | ||
| Eamon McCann | 0 | 0 | 9,172 | 1.6 | ||
| Lindsay Whitcroft | 0 | 0 | 4,810 | 0.9 | ||
| Total | 549,277 | |||||
| Turnout | 51.7 | |||||