Dick Spring

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Dick Spring bigraphy, stories - Irish politician, hurler and Gaelic footballer

Dick Spring : biography

29 August 1950 –

Richard "Dick" Spring (born 29 August 1950) is an Irish businessman and former politician. He was first elected as a Labour Party Teachta Dála (TD) in 1981 and retained his seat until 2002. He became leader of the Labour Party in 1982, and held this position until 1997. He served as Minister for the Environment (1982–1983), Minister for Energy (1983–1987) and Minister for Foreign Affairs (1993–November 1994, December 1994–1997). He also served as Tánaiste during those three governments.

Sporting career

Spring played Gaelic football and hurling for Kerry in the seventies. He played his club football with the Kerins O’Rahilly’s club in Tralee and hurling with Crotta O’Neill’s. His father Dan won 2 All-Ireland Senior Football Championships in 1939 and 1940.

He then won rugby union caps for Munster, and lined out for London Irish in England. He also was capped for Ireland three times, debuting against on January 20, 1979 at Landsdowne Road, and receiving his last international cap on February 17, 1979 against at Landsdowne Road.

Political legacy

In Irish political circles, the role of foreign minister was considered a poisoned chalice because of the challenge of resolving the delicate problem of how to de-escalate tensions in Northern Ireland, when both sides were wary of Irish governmental policy. Albert Reynolds, and Dick Spring, placed Northern Ireland at the top of the government agenda. Both were helped considerably by the initiative of John Hume, and the understanding built up between Reynolds, and British Prime Minister John Major. Spring devoted considerable energy and resources towards increasing Ireland’s international influence and diplomatic ties in UN, in the post Cold War world.

As Foreign Minister, there was much critical comment in the media on Spring’s extensive foreign travel. Spring got even harsher criticism, for using the Government Jet to reduce journey times between his home in Tralee and his office in Dublin. However, he did conduct, for the first time, a public consultative process that involved a wide range of citizenry and social groups as well as members of the diaspora, in the re-shaping of Irish foreign policy through the first ever White Paper on Foreign Policy in 1996.Challenges and Opportunities Abroad – White Paper on Foreign Policy, Department of Foreign Affairs, Stationary Office, Dublin 1996 [ISBN 0-07076-2385-5]

Critics of Dick Spring, have described him as a Champagne socialist due to his choice of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel when staying in New York as Foreign Minister, instead of staying in the then Irish-owned Fitzpatrick Hotel. Spring brought the Irish Labour party unprecedented exposure and power in government, at a time when the two significantly larger, right-of-centre political blocs, had precedence in every election.

Subsequent life

Spring later became involved in the Cyprus dispute as a United Nations envoy.

Spring received a directorship appointment to the Irish state telecom enterprise, Eircom, in advance of the scheduled privatisation. As leader of a left of centre party, this was to endorse the privatization, and gain consent from the labour unions to the privatisation plan. However the privatisation was a financial disaster for members of the public, who became ordinary shareholders in the privatisation process. Spring became the target for much of the discontent. Spring’s low work involvement, and generous remuneration package, was openly described as ‘scandalous’, by shareholder advocate Senator Shane Ross. He continues to hold a directorship, with the Financial Services firm FEXCO, based in Killorglin, County Kerry.

Spring lives in Tralee with his wife Kristi (née Hutcheson), an American whom he met while working in New York as a bartender. They have three children. His nephew Arthur Spring is a Labour Party TD for Kerry North–West Limerick having first been a councillor for the Tralee electoral area of Kerry County Council. Spring is a member of Ballybunion Golf Club, and has invited former U.S. President Bill Clinton, amongst others to this location.