| Minister for Finance |
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|---|---|
| Appointer | President of Ireland on the nomination of the Taoiseach |
| Inaugural holder | Eoin MacNeill |
| Formation | 22 January 1919 |
| Website | www.finance.gov.ie |
The Minister for Finance (Irish: An tAire Airgeadais) is the title held by the Irish government minister responsible for all financial and monetary matters. The office-holder controls the Department of Finance and is considered one of the most important members of the Government of Ireland.
The current Minister for Finance is Michael Noonan, TD. He is assisted by:
The department and minister are occasionally called the Irish Exchequer (or simply Exchequer, or in Irish Státchiste); a term previously used under the Chancellor of the Exchequer of Ireland.
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The Minister for Finance holds the second most important ministerial position in the Irish Cabinet after that of the Taoiseach. He or she is in charge of the Department of Finance responsible for all financial matters in the Republic of Ireland. Due to the importance of the cabinet post, the Minister for Finance must be a member of Dáil Éireann. Many Ministers who have held the Finance portfolio have gone on to become Taoiseach, including Jack Lynch, Charles Haughey, Albert Reynolds, John Bruton, Bertie Ahern and Brian Cowen.
One of the most important aspects of the Minister's work is the creation of the annual Budget which is announced to the Dáil in a speech, usually delivered on the first Wednesday of December (although this date may be changed; for instance, the 2009 Budget was delivered to the Dáil on Tuesday, 14 October 2008, due to the rapidly deteriorating state of Ireland's public finances at the time). In the Budget the Minister details the Government's spending programme for the coming year. The Budget consists of:
| No. | Name | Entered Office | Left Office | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Eoin MacNeill | 22 January 1919 | 1 April 1919 | Sinn Féin | |
| 2. | Michael Collins | 2 April 1919 | 22 August 1922 | Sinn Féin | |
| 3. | W. T. Cosgrave (acting) | 17 July 1922 | 21 September 1923 | Pro-Treaty Sinn Féin | |
| 4. | Ernest Blythe | 21 September 1923 | 9 March 1932 | Cumann na nGaedheal | |
| 5. | Seán MacEntee (1st time) | 9 March 1932 | 16 September 1939 | Fianna Fáil | |
| 6. | Seán T. O'Kelly | 16 September 1939 | 14 June 1945 | Fianna Fáil | |
| 7. | Frank Aiken | 19 June 1945 | 18 February 1948 | Fianna Fáil | |
| 8. | Patrick McGilligan | 18 February 1948 | 13 June 1951 | Fine Gael | |
| Seán MacEntee (2nd time) | 13 June 1951 | 2 June 1954 | Fianna Fáil | ||
| 9. | Gerard Sweetman | 2 June 1954 | 20 March 1957 | Fine Gael | |
| 10. | James Ryan | 20 March 1957 | 21 April 1965 | Fianna Fáil | |
| 11. | Jack Lynch | 21 April 1965 | 10 November 1966 | Fianna Fáil | |
| 12. | Charles Haughey | 10 November 1966 | 7 May 1970 | Fianna Fáil | |
| 13. | George Colley (1st time) | 9 May 1970 | 14 March 1973 | Fianna Fáil | |
| 14. | *Richie Ryan | 14 March 1973 | 5 July 1977 | Fine Gael | |
| *George Colley (2nd time) | 5 July 1977 | 11 December 1979 | Fianna Fáil | ||
| 15. | *Michael O'Kennedy | 12 December 1979 | 16 December 1980 | Fianna Fáil | |
| 16. | *Gene Fitzgerald | 16 December 1980 | 30 June 1981 | Fianna Fáil | |
| 17. | John Bruton (1st time) | 30 June 1981 | 9 March 1982 | Fine Gael | |
| 18. | Ray MacSharry (1st time) | 9 March 1982 | 14 December 1982 | Fianna Fáil | |
| 19. | Alan Dukes | 14 December 1982 | 14 February 1986 | Fine Gael | |
| *John Bruton (2nd time) | 14 February 1986 | 10 March 1987 | Fine Gael | ||
| *Ray MacSharry (2nd time) | 10 March 1987 | 24 November 1988 | Fianna Fáil | ||
| 20. | Albert Reynolds | 24 November 1988 | 7 November 1991 | Fianna Fáil | |
| Charles Haughey (acting) | 7 November 1991 | 14 November 1991 | Fianna Fáil | ||
| 21. | Bertie Ahern | 14 November 1991 | 15 December 1994 | Fianna Fáil | |
| 22. | Ruairi Quinn | 15 December 1994 | 26 June 1997 | Labour Party | |
| 23. | Charlie McCreevy | 26 June 1997 | 29 September 2004 | Fianna Fáil | |
| 24. | Brian Cowen | 29 September 2004 | 7 May 2008 | Fianna Fáil | |
| 25. | Brian Lenihan | 7 May 2008 | 9 March 2011 | Fianna Fáil | |
| 26. | Michael Noonan | 9 March 2011 | Incumbent | Fine Gael | |
The asterisk (*) indicates Ministers who held both the Finance and Public Service portfolios at the same time.
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