Conall McDevitt became National Secretary of Labour Youth

Labour Youth

Labour Youth is the youth wing of the Labour Party of Ireland. Anyone under the age of 27 is eligible to join Labour Youth....

 (Ireland) in 1993 and Vice President of ECOSY

Ecosy

ECOSY - Young European Socialists is an association of social-democratic youth organisations in the European Union. The most widely accepted pronunciation of ECOSY is as a single word with short "e" and short "o"....

 (European Community Organisation of Socialist Youth) in 1994. The son of an Official IRA

Official IRA

The Official Irish Republican Army or Official IRA is an Irish republican paramilitary group whose goal was to create a "32-county workers' republic" in Ireland. It emerged from a split in the Irish Republican Army in December 1969, shortly after the beginning of "The Troubles"...

 internee and a great-grandson of a Belfast republican socialist, Danny McDevitt, he became the Social Democratic and Labour Party

Social Democratic and Labour Party

The Social Democratic and Labour Party is a social-democratic, Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. Its basic party platform advocates Irish reunification, and the further devolution of powers while Northern Ireland remains part of the United Kingdom...

's (SDLP) Director of Communications in November 1996 until December 1999.

He was involved in the negotiations that led to the Good Friday Agreement. During the talks McDevitt acted as spokesperson for John Hume

John Hume

John Hume is a former Irish politician from Derry, Northern Ireland. He was a founding member of the Social Democratic and Labour Party, and was co-recipient of the 1998 Nobel Peace Prize, with David Trimble....

 and Seamus Mallon

Seamus Mallon

Seamus Frederick Mallon born 17 August 1936, in Markethill, County Armagh, is an Irish politician and former Deputy Leader of the nationalist Social Democratic and Labour Party in Northern Ireland...

. He left the SDLP to work as customer relations manager of Viridian Group PLC, owners of Northern Ireland Electricity, the monopoly electricity supplier in Northern Ireland.

Following the establishment of the power sharing Executive, McDevitt served as Special Adviser to the Minister for Agriculture and Rural Development, Brid Rodgers

Bríd Rodgers

Bríd Rodgers , born Bríd Stratford Bríd Rodgers (Irish: Bríd Mhic Ruairí), born Bríd Stratford Bríd Rodgers (Irish: Bríd Mhic Ruairí), born Bríd Stratford (born 20 February 1935, in Gweedore [Gaoth Dobhair], County Donegal, Ireland, is a former Irish nationalist politician....

. He was involved in the attempts to resolve the standoff at Drumcree

Drumcree conflict

The Drumcree conflict or Drumcree standoff is an ongoing dispute over a yearly parade in the town of Portadown, Northern Ireland. The dispute is between the Orange Order and local residents. The residents are currently represented by the Garvaghy Road Residents Coalition ; before 1995 they were...

 and advised Rodgers during the 2002 Foot and Mouth crisis in Northern Ireland when she received acclaim for her efforts.

Managing Director of Weber Shandwick

Weber Shandwick

Weber Shandwick is a public relations firm.-History:Weber Shandwick is a formation of three previous companies:*The Weber Group - Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1987, leveraging emerging technologies such as the mobile phone and the internet into the world of communications, which made the company a...

 in Northern Ireland since 2007 and Chairperson of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations

Chartered Institute of Public Relations

The Chartered Institute of Public Relations is the professional body for PR practitioners in the United Kingdom. Founded in February 1948 as the Institute of Public Relations, by 2009 it had grown to over 9000 members involved in all aspects of the public relations industry, and is the largest...

, he has won several PRCA, CIPR Pride CIPR Excellence Awards for his consultancy work. He was selected as the new SDLP MLA for South Belfast on 9 December 2009 and succeeded Carmel Hanna

Carmel Hanna

Carmel Hanna MLA is a Northern Irish politician. She is a member of the SDLP and was MLA for South Belfast from 1998 to 2010.-Early life and nursing career:...

 in the Northern Ireland Assembly

Northern Ireland Assembly

The Northern Ireland Assembly is the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland. It has power to legislate in a wide range of areas that are not explicitly reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and to appoint the Northern Ireland Executive...

 in early 2010.

Personal life

Born in Dublin, Ireland but brought up in Malaga, Spain, McDevitt was educated at the Instituto Bachillerato Mixto, Fuengirola

Fuengirola

Fuengirola, in ancient times known as Suel and then Suhayl, is a large town and municipality on the Costa del Sol in the province of Málaga, autonomous community of Andalusia in southern Spain. It is a major tourist resort, with more than 8 km of beaches, and home to a mediæval Moorish fortress...

. He lectures occasionally on public affairs and public relations. His blog was a source of commentary on economic and political issues in Ireland.