Brian Lenihan RIP (condolences thread)

I don't like the self righteous, pompous attitde that some have by telling people they shouldn't say what they feel about it..

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

oh, come on...
he (among others) presided over the biggest scandal in Irish history, handing billions of banking debt over to the public and lied constantly to the same public about what was going on.

I for one am not sorry to see the back of him.

Ye may feel that's harsh but he imposed hardship and suffering on tens of thousands of Irish people due to his financial decisions as minister and did it all without regret and with a smile on his face.

Message of condolences of Commissioner Olli Rehn on the passing of former Irish Finance Minister Brian Lenihan


It is with great sadness that I have learnt this morning of the passing of Brian Lenihan. Brian displayed great personal courage, strength and dedication to the public good, during a period of exceptional economic challenge in the life of Ireland and Europe. Brian's extraordinary personal and professional contribution, have ensured that he is and will always be held in the highest esteem by those of us who worked with him in Europe. In placing his duty to the nation above his personal difficulties, Brian Lenihan has provided us with an outstanding example of public service. I would like to convey my condolences to his wife Patricia, to his children, to his mother and to his family on their enormous loss. This is a loss which will be shared by many people across the political spectrum in Europe, who have had the honour to know Brian Lenihan as a politician and as a person.

Personal statement from Commissioner Geoghegan-Quinn on the death of Brian Lehihan TD

Brian Lenihan was a shining beacon in Irish life.

His personal courage in the face of devastating health news while coping with very difficult economic news was exemplary. He never let up. He never let go. His commitment was total. Even when he was really ill and should perhaps have been spending more time at home, he responded to what he saw as a personal imperative: to meet the huge economic challenge for Ireland and for Europe as a whole.

The courage with which he faced his diagnosis was matched by the unselfconscious directness with which he answered questions about it. No self-pity. No sense of unfairness. Life dealt him a bad personal hand and a dire political hand, but he wasted no time on repining over either. He was that best of politicians, a man committed, always and ever, to the public good.

I worked very closely with him in recent years particularly. He was the member of the Irish Government with whom I necessarily had most contact. We talked at least once a week, and sometimes twice or three times a week. When he attended Ministerial meetings in Brussels, he nearly always managed to meet with me. Although we enjoyed each other’s company - this was a warm, witty man filled with natural charm - he was always focussed on Ireland and on what was the best thing to do in the economic maelstrom within which he was forced to operate.

What was most significant about his impact on people in Europe was exemplified by the fact that he was the only Minister universally referred to by European Commission members by his first name. Not by his title. Not by his full name. Everybody who talked about Ireland talked about Brian, knowing that everybody present immediately knew him in that casually intimate way.

His passing robs us of a profoundly good man whose management of his illness was, in itself, a triumph of understated valour.

I would like to convey my deepest condolences to Brian's wife, Patricia, his children, his mother, brothers and sister.

Go dtuga Dia solas na bhFlaitheas dá anam uasal.

Máire Geoghegan-Quinn