Brian Cowen information

Brian Cowen
Brian Cowen
	Cowen in June 2010
12th Taoiseach
	In office; 7 May 2008 – 9 March 2011
President	Mary McAleese
Tánaiste	Mary Coughlan
Preceded by	Bertie Ahern
Succeeded by	Enda Kenny
Leader of Fianna Fáil
	In office; 7 May 2008 – 22 January 2011
Deputy	Mary Coughlan
Preceded by	Bertie Ahern
Succeeded by	Micheál Martin
Preceded by	In office; 19 January 2011 – 9 March 2011
Other offices
Minister for Foreign Affairs
	In office; 19 January 2011 – 9 March 2011
Preceded by	Micheál Martin
Succeeded by	Eamon Gilmore
	In office; 27 January 2000 – 29 September 2004
Taoiseach	Bertie Ahern
Preceded by	David Andrews
Succeeded by	Dermot Ahern
Tánaiste
	In office; 14 June 2007 – 7 May 2008
Taoiseach	Bertie Ahern
Preceded by	Michael McDowell
Succeeded by	Mary Coughlan
Deputy leader of Fianna Fáil
	In office; 28 July 2002 – 7 May 2008
Leader	Bertie Ahern
Preceded by	Mary O'Rourke
Succeeded by	Mary Coughlan
Minister for Finance
	In office; 29 September 2004 – 7 May 2008
Taoiseach	Bertie Ahern
Preceded by	Charlie McCreevy
Succeeded by	Brian Lenihan
Minister for Health and Children
	In office; 26 June 1997 – 27 January 2000
Taoiseach	Bertie Ahern
Preceded by	Michael Noonan
Succeeded by	Micheál Martin
Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications
	In office; 22 January 1993 – 15 December 1994
Taoiseach	Albert Reynolds
Preceded by	Charlie McCreevy
Succeeded by	Michael Lowry
Minister for Energy
	In office; 12 January 1993 – 22 January 1993
Taoiseach	Albert Reynolds
Preceded by	Albert Reynolds
Succeeded by	Charlie McCreevy
Minister for Labour
	In office; 11 February 1992 – 12 January 1993
Taoiseach	Albert Reynolds
Preceded by	Michael O'Kennedy
Succeeded by	Mervyn Taylor
Teachta Dála
	In office; June 1984 – February 2011
Constituency	Laois–Offaly
Personal details
Born	10 January 1960 (age 64); Tullamore, County Offaly, Ireland
Political party	Fianna Fáil
Spouse	Mary Molloy (m. 1994)
Children	2
Parent	Bernard Cowen (father);
Relatives	Barry Cowen (brother)
Education	Cistercian College, Roscrea
Alma mater	University College Dublin
Signature

Brian Bernard Cowen (born 10 January 1960) is an Irish former politician who served as Taoiseach and Leader of Fianna Fáil from 2008 to 2011. Cowen served as a TD for the constituency of Laois–Offaly from 1984 to 2011 and served in a number of ministerial roles between 1992 and 2011, including as Minister for Finance from 2004 to 2008 and Tánaiste from 2007 to 2008.^[1]

Cowen was elected leader of Fianna Fáil in May 2008, upon the resignation of Bertie Ahern, and was nominated by Dáil Éireann to replace him as Taoiseach. Weeks after taking office, his administration faced the Irish financial and banking crises. He received substantial criticism for his failure to stem the tide of either crisis, ultimately culminating in the Irish Government's formal request for financial aid from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund, which was widely regarded in Ireland as a national humiliation.^[2] His leadership subsequently saw public support for Fianna Fáil plunge to record lows, and Cowen set a record for the lowest approval rating in the history of Irish opinion polling, at one point reaching an approval rating of 8 percent.^[3] In January 2011, following a failed attempt at a cabinet reshuffle, and facing growing political pressure, Cowen resigned as Leader of Fianna Fáil, but remained as Taoiseach until after the general election held the following month; Cowen stood down from politics at that election and left office as Taoiseach a fortnight later.^[4]^[5]

The Sunday Times described Cowen's tenure as Taoiseach as "a dismal failure".^[6] In 2011, the Irish Independent called Cowen the "worst Taoiseach in the history of the State".^[7]

^ "Brian Cowen". Oireachtas Members Database. Archived from the original on 8 November 2018. Retrieved 14 May 2009.
^ Ferriter, Diarmaid (3 March 2011). "Recapturing relevance a huge challenge for FF". The Irish Times.
^ Cite error: The named reference leastpopular was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ "Cowen resigns as FF leader, remains Taoiseach". RTÉ News. 22 January 2011. Archived from the original on 23 January 2011. Retrieved 22 January 2011.
^ De Bréadún, Deaglán (1 February 2011). "Cowen calls time on his political career after 27 years". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
^ Cite error: The named reference stepaside was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ "The worst week for the worst Taoiseach in the State's history". The Irish Independent. 23 January 2011. Archived from the original on 24 January 2011. Retrieved 23 January 2011.

[oireachtas_db-1] "Brian Cowen". Oireachtas Members Database. Archived from the original on 8 November 2018. Retrieved 14 May 2009.

[2] Ferriter, Diarmaid (3 March 2011). "Recapturing relevance a huge challenge for FF". The Irish Times.

[leastpopular-3] Cite error: The named reference leastpopular was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[resignation-4] "Cowen resigns as FF leader, remains Taoiseach". RTÉ News. 22 January 2011. Archived from the original on 23 January 2011. Retrieved 22 January 2011.

[retirement-5] De Bréadún, Deaglán (1 February 2011). "Cowen calls time on his political career after 27 years". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 1 February 2011.

[stepaside-6] Cite error: The named reference stepaside was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[worstweek-7] "The worst week for the worst Taoiseach in the State's history". The Irish Independent. 23 January 2011. Archived from the original on 24 January 2011. Retrieved 23 January 2011.

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