Jim Duffy (author)
Encyclopedia
Jim Duffy is an Irish
historian, political commentator, and served as a policy advisor to then Irish leader of the Opposition, Fine Gael
leader Enda Kenny
prior to the 2011 general election. He first achieved prominence in 1990 when the contents of his on-the-record interview with then Tánaiste
Brian Lenihan, in which Lenihan admitted making calls to the residence of the Irish president seeking to speak to President Hillery
to urge him to refuse a Dáil dissolution in controversial circumstances (something he had previously denied), led to Lenihan's dismissal from government, his defeat in that year's Irish presidential election
and the unexpected election of the left wing liberal Mary Robinson
as President of Ireland
.
Duffy was one of six people chosen to submit international reports on heads of state to Australia's Republic Advisory Committee
in 1993. He was a frequent contributor to The Irish Times
and the Sunday Independent
, and a columnist in Magill
magazine, as well as appearing on radio and television prior to his appointment to Kenny's office, but has ceased all media work since that date.
in Meath
in 1966. His family are long-term residents of the townland
of Durhamstown
in the civil parish
of Ardbraccan
and the barony of Lower Navan, outside Navan
in County Meath. On his maternal side, through his mother Bernadette Duffy (née Cadden) he is descended from Ballydurrow, in Munterconnaught
, Cavan
.
Jim Duffy was educated in Bohermeen
National School and St. Patrick's Classical School
in Navan, where his classmates included the journalist Simon Cumbers
(who was killed by Al Qaeda in Saudi Arabia
in 2004). In 1984 Duffy began to study History and Politics in University College Dublin
, achieving a 2:1 degree in 1987. He received a first class honours degree for his post-graduate thesis on the presidency of Ireland in 1991.
in September 1990. In the interview Lenihan confirmed what he had previously confirmed to other writers over eight years, that on 27 January 1982 he, along with party leader Charles Haughey
and a colleague, Sylvester Barrett
, had repeatedly phoned Áras an Uachtaráin
, the residence of the President of Ireland, to try to put pressure on the President, Patrick Hillery
, to refuse a dissolution of parliament
to the Taoiseach
(prime minister), Dr Garret FitzGerald
. (FitzGerald's government had just been defeated in Dáil Éireann
in a vote on the budget.)
In October 1990, in the midst of the presidential election, FitzGerald was to be a guest, alongside Lenihan, on RTÉ
1's Questions and Answers political debate programme. He has previously issued a press release about the phone calls issue, but it had received no publicity. He decided to raise the issue of the calls again on the programme, given that in the preceding week Lenihan changed his story of eight years and had now denied twice, first in a student debate, then in an Irish Press interview with Emily O'Reilly
, making any calls. When challenged on the programme Lenihan maintained that his October 1990 version was correct, denying that he had played "any hand, act of part" in attempts to pressurise President Hillery. FitzGerald had been in Áras an Uachtaráin
on the night of the calls and had been told by the President's staff that Lenihan had persistently been making calls. FitzGerald aggressively challenged Lenihan, saying "I was in the Áras, Brian, and I know how many calls there were."
Aware that Lenihan had been one of Duffy's sources for the original article in September, with Duffy's permission the Irish Times ran a front page story stating that Lenihan had made the calls he was now denying. In the resulting furore Lenihan's campaign manager Bertie Ahern
either deliberately or accidentally revealed on a radio programme that Duffy had interviewed Lenihan. Duffy became the subject of mounting political and media pressure, with his silence being spun by Fianna Fáil
press staff as evidence that the rumours that Lenihan had confirmed to him that he had made calls were false. (Lenihan had assured his campaign team that he had said nothing in the interview that could cause problems.) After three days of intense political and media pressure, Duffy released the relevant proportion of the on-the-record tape interview he had done with Lenihan. The release took place in a press conference in a Dublin hotel.
The release of the tape threw Lenihan's campaign into meltdown. Lenihan tried in a subsequent live television interview on the Six-One News to insist that what he had said to Duffy was wrong, insisting that "on mature recollection" his October 1990 version was the correct one, and all that he had said previously over eight years was incorrect. However his popularity plummeted by 18% overnight. The opposition Fine Gael
party put down a Motion of No Confidence
in the government. The Taoiseach, Charles Haughey, denied that Lenihan was under any pressure to resign. However when the minority party in government, the Progressive Democrats
, threatened to quit government unless Lenihan resigned or was sacked, and Lenihan refused to resign, the Taoiseach, Charles Haughey, instructed President Hillery to sack him. Lenihan went on to become the first candidate from his party ever to lose an Irish presidential election, with the Irish Labour Party candidate, Mary Robinson, eventually winning the office.
Duffy was strongly attacked by the Taoiseach and members of the government under parliamentary privilege, with claims that his research was bogus and that he had been part of a secret plot to destroy Lenihan. However his thesis on the presidency of Ireland was awarded a First Class honour by the National University of Ireland
. Duffy has written an account of the events of this period in the March 2006 edition of Magill
magazine.
, the former Governor-General and President of Trinidad and Tobago) commissioned in 1993 by Australia
's Republic Advisory Committee
to prepare reports on international republican experiences —to appear as an appendix to the committee's main report. His report, along with those of five others, was submitted as part of that larger report to the then Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating
.
Duffy's recommendations formed a part of the debate in Australia on the possible move from being a monarchy to become a republic. His description of heads of state as fitting three distinct categories (Chief Executive, Nominal Chief Executive and Non-Executive) was widely used in the subsequent debate, and were referred to in major speeches by all sides in the debate.
During the constitutional referendum on creating a republic in 1999 Duffy in Australian media interviews was critical of the form of presidency being proposed, arguing in particular that the lack of security of tenure
offered to the proposed office holder would seriously compromise the office holder's independence and ability to exercise their powers.
The 1999 referendum on declaring an Australian republic was ultimately defeated.
, the Irish Independent
, the Sunday Independent
, the Sunday Times
, the Sunday Tribune
, the The Sunday Business Post
and the Irish Examiner
. He also was a contributor to RTÉ radio and television, the BBC
, UTV
and Sky News
. His contributions largely focused on politics, history, religion and current affairs.
He was a columnist with Magill
magazine, Ireland'a major political and current affairs magazine, until October 2007 when he resigned to take up a research post in politics.
In April and May 2007 he was one of the main contributors to Uachtarán, an eight part TG4
documentary on the office of President of Ireland
.
reported that Duffy had been appointed a Deputy Press Officer for Fine Gael for the duration of 2007 general election.
In October 2007 Duffy was appointed a policy officer in his office by the leader of Fine Gael, Enda Kenny. Duffy resigned his post as columnist with Magill magazine and since that date has ceased to do media work. His new role also involves participating in the National Forum on Europe, a government-created think-tank on the relationship between the European Union and Ireland.
, France
, the Netherlands
and has also featured in parliamentary debates in Ireland, including a submission in 2005 from a gay advocacy group to the Oireachtas All-Party Committee on the Constitution, which was exploring whether to amend the Constitution of Ireland
to allow gay marriage.
Gay marriage
Presidency of Ireland
Lenihan resignation
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...
historian, political commentator, and served as a policy advisor to then Irish leader of the Opposition, Fine Gael
Fine Gael
Fine Gael is a centre-right to centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland. It is the single largest party in Ireland in the Oireachtas, in local government, and in terms of Members of the European Parliament. The party has a membership of over 35,000...
leader Enda Kenny
Enda Kenny
Enda Kenny is an Irish Fine Gael politician, and has been the Taoiseach since 2011. He has led Fine Gael since 2002. He served as Minister for Tourism and Trade from 1994 to 1997. He is also a two-term Vice President of the European People's Party.Kenny has been a Teachta Dála for Mayo since...
prior to the 2011 general election. He first achieved prominence in 1990 when the contents of his on-the-record interview with then Tánaiste
Tánaiste
The Tánaiste is the deputy prime minister of Ireland. The current Tánaiste is Eamon Gilmore, TD who was appointed on 9 March 2011.- Origins and etymology :...
Brian Lenihan, in which Lenihan admitted making calls to the residence of the Irish president seeking to speak to President Hillery
Patrick Hillery
Patrick John "Paddy" Hillery was an Irish politician and the sixth President of Ireland from 1976 until 1990. First elected at the 1951 general election as a Fianna Fáil Teachta Dála for Clare, he remained in Dáil Éireann until 1973...
to urge him to refuse a Dáil dissolution in controversial circumstances (something he had previously denied), led to Lenihan's dismissal from government, his defeat in that year's Irish presidential election
Irish presidential election, 1990
-Aftermath:While the role of the presidency in day to day politics is a very limited one the Robinson presidency is regarded by many observers as a watershed in Irish society symbolising the shift away from the conservative ultracatholic male-dominated Ireland which existed up until the end of the...
and the unexpected election of the left wing liberal Mary Robinson
Mary Robinson
Mary Therese Winifred Robinson served as the seventh, and first female, President of Ireland from 1990 to 1997, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, from 1997 to 2002. She first rose to prominence as an academic, barrister, campaigner and member of the Irish Senate...
as President of Ireland
President of Ireland
The President of Ireland is the head of state of Ireland. The President is usually directly elected by the people for seven years, and can be elected for a maximum of two terms. The presidency is largely a ceremonial office, but the President does exercise certain limited powers with absolute...
.
Duffy was one of six people chosen to submit international reports on heads of state to Australia's Republic Advisory Committee
Republic Advisory Committee
The Republic Advisory Committee was a committee established by the then Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating in May 1993 to examine the constitutional and legal issues that would arise were Australia to become a republic...
in 1993. He was a frequent contributor to The Irish Times
The Irish Times
The Irish Times is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Kevin O'Sullivan who succeeded Geraldine Kennedy in 2011; the deputy editor is Paul O'Neill. The Irish Times is considered to be Ireland's newspaper of record, and is published every day except Sundays...
and the Sunday Independent
Sunday Independent
The Sunday Independent is a broadsheet Sunday newspaper published in Ireland by Independent News and Media plc. The newspaper is edited by Aengus Fanning, and is the biggest selling Irish Sunday newspaper by a large margin ; average circulation of 291,323 between June 2004 and January 2005,...
, and a columnist in Magill
Magill
Magill was an Irish politics and current affairs magazine founded by Vincent Browne and others in 1977. Magill was widely perceived as groundbreaking, specialising in in-depth investigative articles and colourful reportage by journalists such as Eamonn McCann and Gene Kerrigan...
magazine, as well as appearing on radio and television prior to his appointment to Kenny's office, but has ceased all media work since that date.
Origins
Duffy was born in DroghedaDrogheda
Drogheda is an industrial and port town in County Louth on the east coast of Ireland, 56 km north of Dublin. It is the last bridging point on the River Boyne before it enters the Irish Sea....
in Meath
County Meath
County Meath is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Mid-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Mide . Meath County Council is the local authority for the county...
in 1966. His family are long-term residents of the townland
Townland
A townland or bally is a small geographical division of land used in Ireland. The townland system is of Gaelic origin—most townlands are believed to pre-date the Norman invasion and most have names derived from the Irish language...
of Durhamstown
Durhamstown
Durhamstown, known occasionally but less frequently as Dormstown, is a townland in the civil parish of Ardbraccan in the Barony of Lower Navan, outside Navan in County Meath. In religious terms it is covered by the Roman Catholic parish of Bohermeen...
in the civil parish
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
of Ardbraccan
Ardbraccan
Ardbraccan is an ancient place of Christian worship in County Meath, Ireland. It is the location of the former residence of the Roman Catholic, then, after the Reformation, the Church of Ireland Bishop of Meath. It is located approximately 30 miles from Dublin.-Origins:Ardbraccan originated as a...
and the barony of Lower Navan, outside Navan
Navan
-People:Navan was the childhood home of Pierce Brosnan, who appeared in the television series Remington Steele and was the fifth film actor to play James Bond. TV personality Hector Ó hEochagáin, and comedians Dylan Moran and Tommy Tiernan also hail from Navan....
in County Meath. On his maternal side, through his mother Bernadette Duffy (née Cadden) he is descended from Ballydurrow, in Munterconnaught
Munterconnaught
Munterconnaught is a civil and ecclesiastical parish of County Cavan in the Republic of Ireland. It is located between the southern shores of Lough Ramor and the county boundary with County Meath.-Etymology:...
, Cavan
Cavan
Cavan is the county town of County Cavan in the Republic of Ireland. The town lies in the north central part of Ireland, near the border with Northern Ireland...
.
Jim Duffy was educated in Bohermeen
Bohermeen
Bohermeen is a Roman Catholic parish in the Irish Diocese of Meath. Its English name is a corruption of an ancient Irish language name, An Bóthar Mín, which meant the smooth road. Originally one of the five famed ancient roadways that led from the mediæval capital of Ireland, Tara, approximately 10...
National School and St. Patrick's Classical School
St. Patrick's Classical School (Navan)
St. Patrick's Classical School in Navan, County Meath is a prominent Roman Catholic Church-run school for boys in the Republic of Ireland. It has produced a number of prominent politicians, journalists, Irish sports personalities, broadcasters and two winners of the famous Perrier Comedy Award at...
in Navan, where his classmates included the journalist Simon Cumbers
Simon Cumbers
Simon Peter Cumbers was an Irish-born freelance journalist working for the BBC who was murdered by apparent Al Qaeda sympathisers while filming one of the terrorist group's safehouse in Saudi Arabia.-Career:...
(who was killed by Al Qaeda in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
in 2004). In 1984 Duffy began to study History and Politics in University College Dublin
University College Dublin
University College Dublin ) - formally known as University College Dublin - National University of Ireland, Dublin is the Republic of Ireland's largest, and Ireland's second largest, university, with over 1,300 faculty and 17,000 students...
, achieving a 2:1 degree in 1987. He received a first class honours degree for his post-graduate thesis on the presidency of Ireland in 1991.
The Lenihan Interview
In 1990 as part of his postgraduate thesis for his Master of Arts in Political Science Duffy interviewed senior politicians, one of whom was the then Tánaiste, Brian Lenihan. The on-the-record interview, in May 1990, formed one source for a major series of articles on the presidency of Ireland, published in The Irish TimesThe Irish Times
The Irish Times is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Kevin O'Sullivan who succeeded Geraldine Kennedy in 2011; the deputy editor is Paul O'Neill. The Irish Times is considered to be Ireland's newspaper of record, and is published every day except Sundays...
in September 1990. In the interview Lenihan confirmed what he had previously confirmed to other writers over eight years, that on 27 January 1982 he, along with party leader Charles Haughey
Charles Haughey
Charles James "Charlie" Haughey was Taoiseach of Ireland, serving three terms in office . He was also the fourth leader of Fianna Fáil...
and a colleague, Sylvester Barrett
Sylvester Barrett
Sylvester A. Barrett was a senior Irish Fianna Fáil politician. He served under Jack Lynch and Charles Haughey as Minister for the Environment and Minister for Defence ....
, had repeatedly phoned Áras an Uachtaráin
Áras an Uachtaráin
Áras an Uachtaráin , formerly the Viceregal Lodge, is the official residence of the President of Ireland. It is located in the Phoenix Park on the northside of Dublin.-Origins:...
, the residence of the President of Ireland, to try to put pressure on the President, Patrick Hillery
Patrick Hillery
Patrick John "Paddy" Hillery was an Irish politician and the sixth President of Ireland from 1976 until 1990. First elected at the 1951 general election as a Fianna Fáil Teachta Dála for Clare, he remained in Dáil Éireann until 1973...
, to refuse a dissolution of parliament
Dissolution of parliament
In parliamentary systems, a dissolution of parliament is the dispersal of a legislature at the call of an election.Usually there is a maximum length of a legislature, and a dissolution must happen before the maximum time...
to the Taoiseach
Taoiseach
The Taoiseach is the head of government or prime minister of Ireland. The Taoiseach is appointed by the President upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann, the lower house of the Oireachtas , and must, in order to remain in office, retain the support of a majority in the Dáil.The current Taoiseach is...
(prime minister), Dr Garret FitzGerald
Garret FitzGerald
Garret FitzGerald was an Irish politician who was twice Taoiseach of Ireland, serving in office from July 1981 to February 1982 and again from December 1982 to March 1987. FitzGerald was elected to Seanad Éireann in 1965 and was subsequently elected to Dáil Éireann as a Fine Gael TD in 1969. He...
. (FitzGerald's government had just been defeated in Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann is the lower house, but principal chamber, of the Oireachtas , which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann . It is directly elected at least once in every five years under the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote...
in a vote on the budget.)
In October 1990, in the midst of the presidential election, FitzGerald was to be a guest, alongside Lenihan, on RTÉ
RTE
RTÉ is the abbreviation for Raidió Teilifís Éireann, the public broadcasting service of the Republic of Ireland.RTE may also refer to:* Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, 25th Prime Minister of Turkey...
1's Questions and Answers political debate programme. He has previously issued a press release about the phone calls issue, but it had received no publicity. He decided to raise the issue of the calls again on the programme, given that in the preceding week Lenihan changed his story of eight years and had now denied twice, first in a student debate, then in an Irish Press interview with Emily O'Reilly
Emily O'Reilly
Emily O'Reilly is an author and former journalist and broadcaster who became Ireland's first female Ombudsman in 2003, succeeding Kevin Murphy....
, making any calls. When challenged on the programme Lenihan maintained that his October 1990 version was correct, denying that he had played "any hand, act of part" in attempts to pressurise President Hillery. FitzGerald had been in Áras an Uachtaráin
Áras an Uachtaráin
Áras an Uachtaráin , formerly the Viceregal Lodge, is the official residence of the President of Ireland. It is located in the Phoenix Park on the northside of Dublin.-Origins:...
on the night of the calls and had been told by the President's staff that Lenihan had persistently been making calls. FitzGerald aggressively challenged Lenihan, saying "I was in the Áras, Brian, and I know how many calls there were."
Aware that Lenihan had been one of Duffy's sources for the original article in September, with Duffy's permission the Irish Times ran a front page story stating that Lenihan had made the calls he was now denying. In the resulting furore Lenihan's campaign manager Bertie Ahern
Bertie Ahern
Patrick Bartholomew "Bertie" Ahern is a former Irish politician who served as Taoiseach of Ireland from 26 June 1997 to 7 May 2008....
either deliberately or accidentally revealed on a radio programme that Duffy had interviewed Lenihan. Duffy became the subject of mounting political and media pressure, with his silence being spun by Fianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party , more commonly known as Fianna Fáil is a centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland, founded on 23 March 1926. Fianna Fáil's name is traditionally translated into English as Soldiers of Destiny, although a more accurate rendition would be Warriors of Fál...
press staff as evidence that the rumours that Lenihan had confirmed to him that he had made calls were false. (Lenihan had assured his campaign team that he had said nothing in the interview that could cause problems.) After three days of intense political and media pressure, Duffy released the relevant proportion of the on-the-record tape interview he had done with Lenihan. The release took place in a press conference in a Dublin hotel.
The release of the tape threw Lenihan's campaign into meltdown. Lenihan tried in a subsequent live television interview on the Six-One News to insist that what he had said to Duffy was wrong, insisting that "on mature recollection" his October 1990 version was the correct one, and all that he had said previously over eight years was incorrect. However his popularity plummeted by 18% overnight. The opposition Fine Gael
Fine Gael
Fine Gael is a centre-right to centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland. It is the single largest party in Ireland in the Oireachtas, in local government, and in terms of Members of the European Parliament. The party has a membership of over 35,000...
party put down a Motion of No Confidence
Motion of no confidence
A motion of no confidence is a parliamentary motion whose passing would demonstrate to the head of state that the elected parliament no longer has confidence in the appointed government.-Overview:Typically, when a parliament passes a vote of no...
in the government. The Taoiseach, Charles Haughey, denied that Lenihan was under any pressure to resign. However when the minority party in government, the Progressive Democrats
Progressive Democrats
The Progressive Democrats , commonly known as the PDs, was a pro-free market liberal political party in the Republic of Ireland.Launched on 21 December 1985 by Desmond O'Malley and other politicians who had split from Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, the Progressive Democrats took liberal positions on...
, threatened to quit government unless Lenihan resigned or was sacked, and Lenihan refused to resign, the Taoiseach, Charles Haughey, instructed President Hillery to sack him. Lenihan went on to become the first candidate from his party ever to lose an Irish presidential election, with the Irish Labour Party candidate, Mary Robinson, eventually winning the office.
Duffy was strongly attacked by the Taoiseach and members of the government under parliamentary privilege, with claims that his research was bogus and that he had been part of a secret plot to destroy Lenihan. However his thesis on the presidency of Ireland was awarded a First Class honour by the National University of Ireland
National University of Ireland
The National University of Ireland , , is a federal university system of constituent universities, previously called constituent colleges, and recognised colleges set up under the Irish Universities Act, 1908, and significantly amended by the Universities Act, 1997.The constituent universities are...
. Duffy has written an account of the events of this period in the March 2006 edition of Magill
Magill
Magill was an Irish politics and current affairs magazine founded by Vincent Browne and others in 1977. Magill was widely perceived as groundbreaking, specialising in in-depth investigative articles and colourful reportage by journalists such as Eamonn McCann and Gene Kerrigan...
magazine.
Advising the Republic Advisory Committee
On the basis of his studies of international heads of state, Duffy was one of six people (including Sir Ellis ClarkeEllis Clarke
Sir Ellis Emmanuel Innocent Clarke, TC, GCMG was the second and last Governor-General of Trinidad and Tobago and the first President of Trinidad and Tobago. Clarke was one of the main architects of Trinidad and Tobago's 1962 Independence constitution.Clarke attended Saint Mary's College, winning...
, the former Governor-General and President of Trinidad and Tobago) commissioned in 1993 by Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
's Republic Advisory Committee
Republic Advisory Committee
The Republic Advisory Committee was a committee established by the then Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating in May 1993 to examine the constitutional and legal issues that would arise were Australia to become a republic...
to prepare reports on international republican experiences —to appear as an appendix to the committee's main report. His report, along with those of five others, was submitted as part of that larger report to the then Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating
Paul Keating
Paul John Keating was the 24th Prime Minister of Australia, serving from 1991 to 1996. Keating was elected as the federal Labor member for Blaxland in 1969 and came to prominence as the reformist treasurer of the Hawke Labor government, which came to power at the 1983 election...
.
Duffy's recommendations formed a part of the debate in Australia on the possible move from being a monarchy to become a republic. His description of heads of state as fitting three distinct categories (Chief Executive, Nominal Chief Executive and Non-Executive) was widely used in the subsequent debate, and were referred to in major speeches by all sides in the debate.
During the constitutional referendum on creating a republic in 1999 Duffy in Australian media interviews was critical of the form of presidency being proposed, arguing in particular that the lack of security of tenure
Security of tenure
Security of tenure is a term used in political science to describe a constitutional or legal guarantee that an office-holder cannot be removed from office except in exceptional and specified circumstances....
offered to the proposed office holder would seriously compromise the office holder's independence and ability to exercise their powers.
The 1999 referendum on declaring an Australian republic was ultimately defeated.
Media and research work
During the 1990s and 2000s, Duffy worked as a researcher and as a political commentator for most major Irish publications, including The Irish TimesThe Irish Times
The Irish Times is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Kevin O'Sullivan who succeeded Geraldine Kennedy in 2011; the deputy editor is Paul O'Neill. The Irish Times is considered to be Ireland's newspaper of record, and is published every day except Sundays...
, the Irish Independent
Irish Independent
The Irish Independent is Ireland's largest-selling daily newspaper that is published in both compact and broadsheet formats. It is the flagship publication of Independent News & Media.-History:...
, the Sunday Independent
Sunday Independent
The Sunday Independent is a broadsheet Sunday newspaper published in Ireland by Independent News and Media plc. The newspaper is edited by Aengus Fanning, and is the biggest selling Irish Sunday newspaper by a large margin ; average circulation of 291,323 between June 2004 and January 2005,...
, the Sunday Times
The Sunday Times (UK)
The Sunday Times is a Sunday broadsheet newspaper, distributed in the United Kingdom. The Sunday Times is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News International, which is in turn owned by News Corporation. Times Newspapers also owns The Times, but the two papers were founded...
, the Sunday Tribune
Sunday Tribune
The Sunday Tribune was an Irish Sunday broadsheet newspaper published by Tribune Newspapers plc. It was edited in its final years by Nóirín Hegarty, who changed both the tone and the physical format of the newspaper from broadsheet to tabloid. Former editors include Conor Brady, Vincent Browne,...
, the The Sunday Business Post
The Sunday Business Post
The Sunday Business Post is an Irish national Sunday newspaper published by Post Publications Limited. Post Publications is owned by Thomas Crosbie Holdings. According to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, Ireland, the average weekly circulation was 57,783 for the period January to June 2009. The...
and the Irish Examiner
Irish Examiner
The Irish Examiner, formerly The Cork Examiner and then The Examiner, is an Irish national daily newspaper which primarily circulates in the Munster region surrounding its base in Cork, though it is available throughout the country...
. He also was a contributor to RTÉ radio and television, the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, UTV
UTV
UTV is a television channel based in the UK region of Northern Ireland. The channel is the Channel 3 or Independent Television licensee for Northern Ireland and is operated by UTV Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of UTV Media.- Terrestrial :* Analogue: Normally tuned to 3 * Freeview : 3...
and Sky News
Sky News
Sky News is a 24-hour British and international satellite television news broadcaster with an emphasis on UK and international news stories.The service places emphasis on rolling news, including the latest breaking news. Sky News also hosts localised versions of the channel in Australia and in New...
. His contributions largely focused on politics, history, religion and current affairs.
He was a columnist with Magill
Magill
Magill was an Irish politics and current affairs magazine founded by Vincent Browne and others in 1977. Magill was widely perceived as groundbreaking, specialising in in-depth investigative articles and colourful reportage by journalists such as Eamonn McCann and Gene Kerrigan...
magazine, Ireland'a major political and current affairs magazine, until October 2007 when he resigned to take up a research post in politics.
In April and May 2007 he was one of the main contributors to Uachtarán, an eight part TG4
TG4
TG4 is a public service broadcaster for Irish language speakers. The channel has been on-air since 31 October 1996 in the Republic of Ireland and since April 2005 in Northern Ireland....
documentary on the office of President of Ireland
President of Ireland
The President of Ireland is the head of state of Ireland. The President is usually directly elected by the people for seven years, and can be elected for a maximum of two terms. The presidency is largely a ceremonial office, but the President does exercise certain limited powers with absolute...
.
Political advisor
In May 2007, the Sunday IndependentSunday Independent
The Sunday Independent is a broadsheet Sunday newspaper published in Ireland by Independent News and Media plc. The newspaper is edited by Aengus Fanning, and is the biggest selling Irish Sunday newspaper by a large margin ; average circulation of 291,323 between June 2004 and January 2005,...
reported that Duffy had been appointed a Deputy Press Officer for Fine Gael for the duration of 2007 general election.
In October 2007 Duffy was appointed a policy officer in his office by the leader of Fine Gael, Enda Kenny. Duffy resigned his post as columnist with Magill magazine and since that date has ceased to do media work. His new role also involves participating in the National Forum on Europe, a government-created think-tank on the relationship between the European Union and Ireland.
Writings on religion and gay marriage
He is a frequent contributor to the Irish Times's Rite and Reason religious column. One article in 1998, proposing the existence of Rites of Same Sex Union (in effect gay marriages) in early Christian prayerbooks up to mediaeval times, caused a controversy. The article has been republished on gay websites and some religious websites worldwide and has been quoted in debates on gay marriage in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and has also featured in parliamentary debates in Ireland, including a submission in 2005 from a gay advocacy group to the Oireachtas All-Party Committee on the Constitution, which was exploring whether to amend the Constitution of Ireland
Constitution of Ireland
The Constitution of Ireland is the fundamental law of the Irish state. The constitution falls broadly within the liberal democratic tradition. It establishes an independent state based on a system of representative democracy and guarantees certain fundamental rights, along with a popularly elected...
to allow gay marriage.
Additional information
- John Downing, 'Most Skilful, Most Devious, Most Cunning' A political Biography of Bertie Ahern (Blackwater Press, 2004) ISBN 1-84131-687-3
- T. Ryle Dwyer, Short Fellow: A Biography of Charles J. Haughey (Marino, 1995) ISBN 1-86023-100-4
- Fergus Finlay, Snakes & Ladders (New Island Books, 1998) ISBN 1-874597-76-6
- Fergus Finlay, Mary Robinson: President with a Purpose (O'Brien Press, 1990) ISBN 0-86278-257-0
- Garret FitzGerald, All in a Life (Gill & Macmillan, 1991) ISBN 0-7171-1600-X
- Brian Lenihan, For the Record (Blackwater Press, 1991) ISBN 0-86121-362-9
- Olivia O'Leary & Helen Burke, Mary Robinson: The Authorised Biography (Hodder & Stoughton, 1998) ISBN 0-340-71738-6
- Raymond Smith, Garret: The Enigma (Aherlow Publishers) 1985) No ISBN
- Lorna Siggins, The Woman Who Took Power In The Park: Mary Robinson, President of Ireland, 1990-1997 (Mainstream Publishing, 1997) ISBN 1-85158-805-1
External links
On Australia- 'Maintaining Our Democracy in Monarchy or Republic', a paper presented to the Australian Institute of International Affairs by The Hon. Richard E. McGarvie AC in 1997 (quotes from Duffy's description of heads of state's role)
- Paper presented to the National Conference of YAAR: Young Australians Against this Republic, Parliament House, Melbourne, 23 July 1999, quoting Duffy
- Responsible Lawyers and the Republic Debate - Paper 7
Gay marriage
Presidency of Ireland
- Interview with Jim Duffy on RTE Radio 1's Morning Ireland programme about the 2004 presidential election
- National Archives of Ireland exhibition on the office of Secretary to the President of Ireland (commentary by Dr. Dermot Ferriter).
- Article on Ireland's fifth president in the Sunday Times in January 2005
- Irish Examiner article by Jim Duffy in 1997 on President McAleese's selection of members of the Council of State
Lenihan resignation
- Dáil debate on the Motion of No Confidence in the Government 31 October 1990