John McCartin

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John Joseph McCartin (born March 24, 1939) is a retired Irish Fine Gael party politician, who served in both houses of the Oireachtas and in the European Parliament.

He was born Aughnasheelan, Ballinamore Co. Leitrim, the son of small farmer Francis McCartin and his wife Annie Kate Lohan in Ireland. Educated at Drumbibe National School, Aughnasheelan and St. Patrick's College, Cavan. In 1972 he married Ann Clarke. They had two sons, John was born in 1975 and Brendan was born in 1977. Brendan died tragically following a car accident in 1994. Joe founded the McCartin Bros. group of companies with his brother Tommy involving Structural Steel, Clothing Manufacture, Milling, Forestry, Pig Production, and Dairy/Beef Farming. They quickly became the largest employers in Leitrim.

[edit] Political career

McCartin was elected to Leitrim County Council in 1967. In 1973 he was elected to Seanad Éireann by the Agricultural Panel, and after his re-election to the Seanad in 1977 he was elected Leas Cathaoirleach of the 14th Seanad.

He was elected to the European Parliament in 1979 and to the Dáil in 1981. He served as secretary of the Fine Gael Parliamentary Party, Shadow Minister for Agriculture, Vice Chairman of the European Parliament's Budgetary Control Committee, Vice President and Auditor of the European Peoples Party. He retired form the European Parliament in 2004 having been the Republic of Ireland's longest-ever serving MEP.

In 1977 he was named as one of Ireland's "People Of The Year" for "bringing hope to a depressed area."

In 2004 he was presented with the Schuman Medal at a meeting of the European Christian Democrats in Budapest, Hungary for "his outstanding contribution to peace and unity in Europe and for the promotion of the human values of mankind".

This page incorporates information from the Oireachtas Members Database