Editing President of Ireland (section)

==History==
The office of president was established in 1937, in part as a replacement for the office of [[Governor-General of the Irish Free State|governor-general]] that existed during the 1922–37 [[Irish Free State]]. The seven-year term of office of the president was inspired by that of the [[president of Germany (1919–1945)|presidents of Weimar Germany]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Law Society of Ireland Gazette |url=https://www.lawsociety.ie/gazette/top-stories/2022/july/constitution-deeply-influenced-by-weimar-germany--hogan/ |access-date=2025-01-04 |website=www.lawsociety.ie}}</ref> At the time the office was established critics warned that the post might lead to the emergence of a dictatorship. However, these fears were not borne out as successive presidents played a limited, largely apolitical role in national affairs.

===Head of state from 1937 to 1949===
{{Main|Irish head of state from 1922 to 1949}}
During the period of 1937 to 1949 it was unclear whether the Irish head of state was actually the president of Ireland or [[George VI]], the [[Monarchy in the Irish Free State|king of Ireland]]. This period of confusion ended in 1949 when the state was declared to be a [[republic]]. The 1937 constitution did not mention the king, but neither did it state that the president was head of state, saying rather that the president "shall take precedence over all other persons in the State". The president exercised some powers that could be exercised by heads of state but which could also be exercised by governors or governors-general, such as appointing the government and promulgating the law.

However, upon his accession to the throne in 1936, George VI had been proclaimed, as previous monarchs had been, "King of Ireland"<ref>{{cite journal |title=Accession Proclamation of King George VI |journal=The London Gazette |date=12 December 1936 |issue=34349 |pages=8109–8112 |url=https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/34349/data.pdf |access-date=12 March 2021 |archive-date=6 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190706151749/https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/34349/data.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Proclamations of Accession of English and British Sovereigns (1547-1952) |url=https://www.heraldica.org/topics/britain/brit-proclamations.htm#George6 |website=Heraldica |access-date=12 March 2021 |archive-date=26 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210226184501/https://www.heraldica.org/topics/britain/brit-proclamations.htm#George6 |url-status=live }}</ref> and, under the [[Executive Authority (External Relations) Act 1936|External Relations Act]] of the same year, it was this king who represented the state in its foreign affairs. Treaties, therefore, were signed in the name of the King of Ireland, who also accredited ambassadors and received the letters of credence of foreign diplomats. This role meant, in any case, that George VI was the Irish head of state in the eyes of foreign nations. The [[Republic of Ireland Act 1948]], which came into force in April 1949, proclaimed a republic and transferred the role of representing the state abroad from the monarch to the president. No change was made to the constitution.

According to Desmond Oulton (owner of [[Clontarf Castle]]), his father John George Oulton had suggested to [[Éamon de Valera]] towards the end of the [[Irish Free State]], that Ireland should have its own king again, as it was in the times of [[Gaelic Ireland]].<ref name="ok">{{Harvnb|O'Keeffe|2013|pp=21}}</ref> He suggested to him, a member of the [[O'Brien Clan]], descended in the paternal line from [[Brian Boru]], a previous [[High King of Ireland]]: the most senior representative at the time was [[Donough O'Brien, 16th Baron Inchiquin]].<ref name="ok"/> Oulton said that Donough's nephew [[Conor O'Brien, 18th Baron Inchiquin]], confirmed that De Valera did offer Donough O'Brien the title of Prince-President of the Irish Republic, but this was turned down and so a President of Ireland was instituted instead.<ref name="ok"/>

===Evolving role===
After the inaugural presidency of [[Douglas Hyde]], who was an interparty nominee for the office, the nominees of the [[Fianna Fáil]] political party won every presidential election until 1990. The party traditionally used the nomination as a reward for its most senior and prominent members, such as party founder and longtime Taoiseach [[Éamon de Valera]] and [[European Commissioner]] [[Patrick Hillery]]. Most of its occupants to that time followed Hyde's precedent-setting conception of the presidency as a conservative, low-key institution that used its ceremonial prestige and few discretionary powers sparingly. In fact, the presidency was such a quiet position that Irish politicians sought to avoid contested presidential elections as often as possible, feeling that the attention such elections would bring to the office was an unnecessary distraction,<ref name=uachtarainmcaleese>{{cite video |people=Diarmaid Ferriter |date=2007 |title=Uachtaráin – Mary McAleese |url=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1826707783014013023# |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629121637/http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1826707783014013023 |url-status=dead |archive-date=29 June 2011 |medium=Television production |language=Irish |publisher=TG4 |location=Dublin, Ireland |access-date=5 January 2011 }}</ref> and office-seekers facing economic austerity would often suggest the elimination of the office as a money-saving measure.<ref name=uachtarainrobinson>{{cite video |people=Diarmaid Ferriter |date=2007 |title=Uachtaráin – Mary Robinson |url=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1826707783014013023# |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629121637/http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1826707783014013023 |url-status=dead |archive-date=29 June 2011 |medium=Television production |language=Irish |publisher=TG4 |location=Dublin, Ireland |access-date=5 January 2011 }}</ref>

Despite the historical meekness of the presidency, however, it has been at the centre of some high-profile controversies. In particular, the fifth president, [[Cearbhall Ó Dálaigh]], faced a contentious dispute with the government in 1976 over the signing of a bill declaring a state of emergency, which ended in Ó Dálaigh's resignation. His successor, Patrick Hillery, was also involved in a controversy in 1982, when then-Taoiseach [[Garret FitzGerald]] requested a dissolution of the [[Dáil Éireann]]. Hillery was bombarded with phone calls from opposition members urging him to refuse the request, an action that Hillery saw as highly inappropriate interference with the president's constitutional role and resisted the political pressure.

The presidency began to be transformed in the 1990s. Hillery's conduct regarding the dissolution affair in 1982 came to light in 1990, imbuing the office with a new sense of dignity and stability. However, it was Hillery's successor, seventh president [[Mary Robinson]], who ultimately revolutionized the presidency. The winner of an upset victory in the highly controversial election of 1990, Robinson was the [[Labour Party (Ireland)|Labour]] nominee, the first president to defeat Fianna Fáil in an election and the first female president. Upon election, however, Robinson took steps to de-politicize the office. She also sought to widen the scope of the presidency, developing new economic, political and cultural links between the state and other countries and cultures, especially those of the [[Irish diaspora]]. Robinson used the prestige of the office to activist ends, placing emphasis during her presidency on the needs of developing countries, linking the history of the [[Great Irish Famine]] to today's nutrition, poverty and policy issues, attempting to create a bridge of partnership between developed and developing countries.<ref name=uachtarainrobinson /> Since 2019 the President has attended annual meetings of the [[Arraiolos Group]] of European non-executive presidents.

===Remuneration and expenses===
After the [[2018 Irish presidential election|2018 presidential election]] the official salary or "personal remuneration" of the president will be [[Euro|€]]249,014.<ref name="higgins2011salary">{{cite press release|url=http://www.president.ie/en/media-library/news-releases/statement-from-president-michael-d.-higgins-regarding-voluntary-salary-redu|title=Statement from President Michael D. Higgins Regarding Voluntary Salary Reduction|date=1 December 2011|publisher=Office of the President|access-date=29 March 2018|archive-date=29 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180329201433/http://www.president.ie/en/media-library/news-releases/statement-from-president-michael-d.-higgins-regarding-voluntary-salary-redu|url-status=live}}</ref> The incumbent, Michael D. Higgins, chooses to receive the same salary although he is entitled to a higher figure of €325,507.<ref name="thejournal_266916"/><ref name="higgins2011salary"/> The president's total "emoluments and allowances" includes an additional €317,434 for expenses.<ref>€317,434 = IR£250,000 specified by {{cite web|url=http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1998/si/67/made/en/print|title=S.I. No. 67/1998 – Presidential Establishment Act, 1938 (Increase of Emoluments and Allowances) Order, 1998|work=[[Irish Statute Book]]|access-date=29 March 2018|archive-date=30 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180330012202/http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1998/si/67/made/en/print|url-status=live}}</ref> The Office of the President's total budget estimate for 2017 was €3.9 million, of which €2.6 million was for pay and running costs, and the balance for the [[Centenarian#United Kingdom and Ireland|"President's Bounty" paid to centenarians]] on their hundredth birthday.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.kildarestreet.com/committees/?gid=2017-02-16a.874|title=Estimates for Public Services 2017 Vote 1 – President's Establishment (Revised)|last=Kenny|first=Enda|author2=Select Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform|date=16 February 2017|work=Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees|publisher=KildareStreet.com|access-date=29 March 2018|archive-date=23 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180523012118/https://www.kildarestreet.com/committees/?gid=2017-02-16a.874|url-status=live}}</ref>

The salary was fixed at [[Irish pound|IR£]]5000 from 1938 to 1973, since when it has been calculated as 10% greater than that of the [[Chief Justice of Ireland|Chief Justice]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1938/act/24/section/1/enacted/en/html#sec1|title=Presidential Establishment Act, 1938, Section 1|work=[[Irish Statute Book]]|access-date=29 March 2018|archive-date=30 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180330012224/http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1938/act/24/section/1/enacted/en/html#sec1|url-status=live}}; {{cite web|url=http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1973/act/18/section/2/enacted/en/html#sec2|title=Presidential Establishment (Amendment) Act, 1973, Section 2|work=[[Irish Statute Book]]|access-date=29 March 2018|archive-date=29 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180329184419/http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/1973/act/18/section/2/enacted/en/html#sec2|url-status=live}}</ref> After the [[post-2008 Irish economic downturn]] most public-sector workers took significant pay cuts, but the Constitution prohibited a reduction in the salary of the president and the [[Judiciary of the Republic of Ireland|judiciary]] during their terms of office, in order to prevent such a reduction being used by the government to apply political pressure on them. While [[Thirty-third Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland|a 2011 Constitutional amendment]] allows judges' pay to be cut, it did not extend to the president, although incumbent Mary McAleese offered to take a voluntary cut in solidarity.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://aji.ie/the-judiciary/judicial-remuneration/|title=Judicial Remuneration|publisher=Association of Judges in Ireland|access-date=29 March 2018|archive-date=14 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171114014315/https://aji.ie/the-judiciary/judicial-remuneration/|url-status=live}}; {{cite web|url=http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2011/act/39/section/12/enacted/en/html|title=Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Amendment) Act 2011, Section 12(2)|work=[[Irish Statute Book]]|access-date=29 March 2018|archive-date=29 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180329184443/http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2011/act/39/section/12/enacted/en/html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="thejournal_266916">{{cite web|url=http://www.thejournal.ie/higher-or-lower-how-does-michael-ds-new-salary-compare-to-other-heads-of-state-266916-Oct2011/|title=Higher or lower: how does Michael D's new salary compare to other heads of state?|work=[[TheJournal.ie]]|date=29 October 2011 |publisher=29 October 2011|access-date=29 March 2018|archive-date=30 October 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111030172526/http://www.thejournal.ie/higher-or-lower-how-does-michael-ds-new-salary-compare-to-other-heads-of-state-266916-Oct2011/|url-status=live}}</ref>