| Ógra Fianna Fáil | |
|---|---|
| Chairperson | Thomas Byrne |
| Vice-Chairperson | Joe O'Neill |
| Founded | 1975 |
| Headquarters | 65–66 Lower Mount Street, Dublin 2 |
| Ideology | Irish republicanism, Conservatism |
| Mother party | Fianna Fáil |
| European affiliation | none |
| Website | www.ogra.ie |
Ógra Fianna Fáil[1] is the youth wing of Fianna Fáil, a political party in Ireland. Within Fianna Fáil it is simply called Ógra (Irish for youth). It was founded in 1975 by party leader Jack Lynch under the guidance of party general secretary, Séamus Brennan. In the Republic, it is active in some major Third Level Institutes and in some Dáil constituencies. It began recruiting members in Northern Ireland, beginning on 25 September 2007 in Derry at Magee College of the University of Ulster, and proceeding to Queen's University Belfast the following day.
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Ógra is a full member of Fianna Fáil itself. The national leadership of Ógra is the National Youth Committee, which is elected at the National Youth Conference which takes place every year to 18 months.
Six members of the Youth Committee are on the Ard Comhairle (the national governing body) of Fianna Fáil. This also includes the Leas-Cathaoirleach who is elected by all the members, one representative from third-level institution branches, and one from each four regions Munster, Leinster, Connacht-Ulster and Dublin.
There are sixteen further members of the Youth Committee: three from each region and three from the third level sector. Ógra Fianna Fáil recently expanded into Northern Ireland and has since added the position of Northern Representative to the committee.
The Cathaoirleach (chair) is independent of election and is appointed by the President of Fianna Fáil. The Cathaoirelach is normally a member of the Dáil or Seanad but not usually a minister. This has recently changed, with the appointment of Dara Calleary as Minister of State (with special responsibility for Labour Affairs) in 2008. The purpose of having a member of the parliamentary party as Cathaoirleach is to provide a direct link for policy purposes.
Thomas Byrne was appointed as Cathaoirleach Ógra at the National Youth Conference which took place in Bundoran in November 2009.
The Leas-Chathaoirleach (vice chairperson) is the highest elected position within Ógra Fianna Fáil. The Leas Cathaoirleach is elected at the National Youth Conference every year. The Cathaoirleach ("chairperson") of Ógra is always a member of the parliamentary party - this is an honorary position and it is the Leas Cathaoirleach who acts as the main spokesperson and representative of Ógra Fianna Fáil. The current Leas Cathaoirleach is Joe O'Neill from Galway East.
The Kevin Barry Cumann is the branch of the Fianna Fáil political party in University College Dublin (UCD). The society, or cumann predates the founding of Ogra Fianna Fáil which was established in 1974 and has records of being active dating to as early as 1948 when Seán Lemass addressed the cumann.[2] The cumann formally dates to 1957 when led by Gerry Collins, then a student organiser in UCD and later Minister for Foreign Affairs and an MEP. The Cumann is named after Kevin Barry (1902–1920), a former medical student of the University who fought and was executed during the Irish War of Independence. It is the largest cumann in Fianna Fáil with recruitment occurring mainly throughout freshers week.
Prominent Fianna Fáil members who were members of the Cumann include former European Commissioner Charlie McCreevy, previous Irish government ministers Dick Roche and Mary Coughlan, Clare TD Timmy Dooley and RTÉ presenter Ryan Tubridy. The author and former political lobbyist Frank Dunlop was a member. The Cumann is run by an officer board elected by members annually at its annual general meeting. In 2011, KBC lost its place as the largest political organisation on campus for the first time to UCD Young Fine Gael.
Members of the National Youth Committee for Ógra Fianna Fáil were elected in November 2009 in Bundoran, County Donegal at the National Youth Conference. Members of the committee also sit on the Ard Comhairle, the National Executive of Fianna Fáil.
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