Seán Lemass: Encyclopedia II - Seán Lemass - Taoiseach 1959-1966

Seán Lemass - Taoiseach 1959-1966

(see also the Lemass Era)

On June 23, 1959 Seán Lemass was appointed Taoiseach on the nomination of Dáil Éireann. Many had wondered if Fianna Fáil could survive without de Valera as leader. However, Lemass quickly established his control on the party. Although he was one of the founder-members of Fianna Fáil he was still only fifty-nine years old, seventeen years younger than the nearly blind de Valera. Consequently, this change in leader and his lifelong devotion to economic matters left him more in tune with the needs of the 1960s in Ireland.

Seán Lemass - New changes

The change of personnel in Fianna Fáil was also accompanied by a change of personnel with James Dillon becoming leader of Fine Gael and Brendan Corish becoming leader of the Labour Party. A generation of leaders who had dominated Irish politics since for over three decades had moved off the stage of history. Lemass also initiated several changes in the Cabinet. He is credited with providing a transition phase between the old guard and a new generation of professional politicians. Younger men such as Brian Lenihan, Charles J. Haughey, Patrick Hillery and Michael Hilliard were all given their first Cabinet portolios by Lemass, and ministers who joined under de Valera, such as Jack Lynch, Neil Blaney and Kevin Boland were promoted by the new Taoiseach. Similarly, several members of the old guard such as Paddy Smith, Seán MacEntee and James Ryan retired from politics during the Lemass era. Frank Aiken was the only founder-member of Fianna Fáil to survive Lemass as a member of the government and Dáil.

Seán Lemass - The economy

Lemass summed up his economic philosophy in one simple but often quoted phrase: "A rising tide lifts all boats." By this he meant that an upsurge in the Irish economy would benefit both the richest and the poorest. Although the White Paper entitled "Economic Development" was first intoduced in 1958 in de Valera's last government, its main recommendations formed the basis for the First Programme for Economic Expansion, which was adopted by Lemass as government policy. The programme, which was the brainchild of T.K. Whitaker, involved a move away from the protectionist policies that had been in place since the 1920s. Tax breaks and grants were also to be provided to foreign firms wishing to set up a company in Ireland. The programme also allowed for the spending of £220 million of state capital in investing in an integrated system of national development.

Following the introduction of this programme the policy of protection was eventually ended and the Control of Manufacturers Act, which had been in place since 1932 and had been introduced by Lemass himself, was also abolished. Although the implementation of the programme coincided with favourable trading conditions the results of the programme speak for themselves. Unemployment fell by a third, emigration reduced considerably and the population grew for the first time since the Famine. Agriculture was the only sector which failed to respond to the programme. A second programme was launched in 1963, with even more ambitious targets, however this was discontinued after Lemass left office in 1967.

The programme also paved the way for free trade. In 1960 Ireland signed the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), a worldwide agreement to reduce tariffs. In 1961 Ireland applied unsuccessfully for membership of the European Economic Community. Ireland's failure to join was said to be Lemass's biggest regret and disappointment as Taoiseach. Ireland eventually joined in 1973, two years after Lemass's death. 1965 paved the way for the signing of the Anglo-Irish Free Trade Agreement between Lemass's government and Harold Wilson's government.

Seán Lemass - Social change

As a result of the economic expansion there was an increase in industrialisation and urbanisation. An increase in prosperity also led to a move awy from insularity and conservatism in Irish life. This was facilitated in no small part by the establishment of the state television service, Telefís Éireann on December 31, 1961. Television programmes, such as The Late Late Show and imported American and British ones, had a profound effect on a change in attitude. Subjects such as contraception, the Catholic Church and divorce were being discussed openly in a way which previous generations would never have imagined. The pontificate of Pope John XXIII and the Second Vatican Council also had a profound effect on the changing attititudes of Irish Catholics.

1963 saw the first visit of a sitting US President to Ireland. John F. Kennedy, the great-grandson of an Irish emigrant, returned came on an official visit. His visit seemed to symbolise a new age for the post Famine Irish. During his visit Kennedy visited relatives in County Wexford, as well as Dublin, Cork and Limerick. Kennedy later said that his four day-visit to Ireland was one of his most enjoyable. Kennedy later personally invited Lemass back to Washington in October of the same year. One month later the young President would be dead.

In 1965 a new report called "Investment in Education" was published. After over forty years of independence the report painted a depressing picture of a system where no changes had taken place. Lemass appointed several young and intelligent men to the post of Minister for Education, including Patrick Hillery and George Colley. Under these people a slow process of change eventually began to take place. However, the must innovative change came in 1966 when Donagh O'Malley was appointed minister. Shortly after taking over O'Malley announced that from 1969 all schools up to Intermediate level would be free and free buses would provide transport for the students. This plan had the backing of Lemass, however, O'Malley never discussed this hugely innovative and hugely expensive plan with any other cabinet ministers, least of all the Minister for Finance Jack Lynch. Unfortunately, O'Malley was dead by the time his brainchild came to fruition.

Seán Lemass - Northern Ireland

The failure of the IRA border campaign in the 1950s and the accession of Lemass as Taoiseach heralded a new policy towards Northern Ireland. The new Taoiseach played down the nationalist rhetoric which had done little to further the situation over the previous forty years. As long as the hardline Basil Brooke, 1st Viscount Brookeborough was Prime Minister of Northern Ireland there was little hope of a rapprochement. However, in 1963 Terence O'Neill, a younger man with a more pragmatic outlook, succeeded as Prime Minister. A friendship had developed between O'Neill's secretary, Jim Malley, and the Irish civil servant, T.K. Whitaker. A series of behind-the-scenes negotiations resulted in O'Neill issuing an invitation to Lemass to visit him at Stormont in Belfast.

On January 14, 1965 Lemass travelled to Belfast in the utmost of secrecy. The media and even his own Cabinet hadn't been informed until the very last minute. The meeting got a mixed reaction in the North, however, in the Republic it was a clear indication that the "Irish Cold War" had ended, or a thaw was prevailing at least. Lemass returned the invitation on February 9 of the same year by inviting O'Neill to Dublin. Further meetings between ministers from both parts of the island occurred. The meetings heralded a new era of optimism, although many unionists felt the 50th Anniversary celebrations of Easter Rising in 1966 were insulting to them. The refusal to acknowledge the civil rights campaign and the outbreak of violence in 1969 ended the optimism.

Seán Lemass - Foreign policy

The Lemass era saw some significant developments in Irish foreign policy. Frank Aiken served as Minister for External Affairs during the whole of Lemass's tenure as Taoiseach. At the United Nations he took an independent stance and backed the admission of China to the organisation, in spite of huge protests from the United States. Ireland played a large role at the UN, serving on the Security Council in 1962, condemning Chinese aggression in Tibet and advocating nuclear arms limitation. One of the main areas of foreign policy which emerged during the Lemass years was a debate over Ireland's neutrality. Lemass was always sceptical about remaining neutral, particulatly if Ireland were to join the EEC. Aiken was much more in favour of a neutral, independent stance. In 1962 Irish troops embarked on their first peace-keeping mission in the First Republic of the Congo. Nine of them would never return.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Taoiseach 1959-1966", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki