Billy Fox (politician)

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Billy Fox
In office
1969 – 1973
Constituency Monaghan
In office
1973 – 12 March 1974
Constituency Cultural and Educational Panel
Born 3 January 1939
County Monaghan Republic of Ireland
Died 12 March 1974
Tircooney, County Monaghan
Political party Fine Gael
Religion Protestant

Billy Fox (3 January 1939 – 12 March 1974) was a politician in the Republic of Ireland, a member of Dáil Éireann (lower house of parliament) from 1969 to 1973, and of Seanad Éireann (upper house) from 1973 until he was killed by the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) in March 1974.[1][2]

A member of the Fine Gael party, Fox was first elected to Monaghan County Council in 1967, and to the Dáil for the Monaghan constituency in the Irish general election, 1969. This was the first time ever that Fine Gael won two seats out of three in Monaghan, a county along the Republic of Ireland's border with Northern Ireland. Monaghan has traditionally had strong republican leanings and Fine Gael had often polled poorly there in the past. Fox was also one of a handful of members of Dáil Éireann (TD's) from the minority Protestant community.

The outbreak of political unrest and violence in Northern Ireland, and a corresponding increase in republican sentiment, may have contributed to the loss of the second Fine Gael seat in Monaghan, against the national trend, in the 1973 general election when Fox was defeated. Later that year however he was elected to the 13th Seanad by the Cultural and Educational panel.

[edit] Death

On 12 March 1974, he went to visit the home of his fiancée in rural County Monaghan, as he did on all Mondays. 13 armed paramilitaries had occupied the house in Tircooney (near Clones). He ran from the scene but was followed and shot dead.

Five members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army were subsequently convicted of the murder. One of the convicted men, Sean Kinsella, later escaped from Portlaoise Prison and was later convicted of arms offences and attempted murder in England. He was released by the Irish government under the Good Friday Agreement.[3] Some dissenting analysts suggest that the Official Irish Republican Army was actually responsible.[4][5]

He was the first member of the Oireachtas to be killed since the assassination of the then Minister for Justice Kevin O'Higgins (also by the IRA) in 1927.

The Senator Billy Fox Memorial Park in Aughnamullen is named in his memory. [6]

[edit] References

  1. ^ The Malcolm Sutton Index of Deaths, widely considered to be the authoritative source on the conflict-related deaths of the Troubles, claims Fox was killed by the "Irish Republican Army", which, according to Sutton's categorisation, is "Provisional Irish Republican Army". (Official IRA killings are attributed to the "Official Irish Republican Army". Moreover, those found guilty of the murder are associated with the Provisional movement.
  2. ^ According to an RTÉ documentary, the Provisional IRA were responsible for the killing. See "Rumours from Monaghan".
  3. ^ Daily Telegraph Dublin frees nine IRA prisoners to aid peace talks
  4. ^ The IRA by Tim Pat Coogan p357 - ISBN 0-00-653155-5;
  5. ^ Tim Pat Coogan, Disillusioned Decades, Dublin: Gill & Macmillan, 1987 p520 - ISBN 0-09-941522-4
  6. ^ Coillte: Senator Billie Fox Park, Co. Cavan

This page incorporates information from the Oireachtas Members Database

[edit] External links