Editing Patrick Hillery (section)

==Foreign assessment==
In 2002, [[state papers]] released by the British [[Public Record Office]] under the [[thirty-year rule]],{{efn|Irish and British state papers are generally released after a delay of thirty years with the exception of papers that are deemed to 'damage the country's image or foreign relations' if they were to be released. In January 2003, the papers from 1972, were released. Irish and British newspapers give extensive coverage to the new releases from the National Archives in Dublin and London, and the Public Record Office in Belfast, at the start of every year.}} published in the Irish media, revealed how Hillery was viewed. A briefing paper – prepared for the [[Foreign Secretary (United Kingdom)|Foreign Secretary]], [[Sir Alec Douglas-Home]], and the [[Secretary of State for Northern Ireland]], [[William Whitelaw]] – observed about Hillery, then [[Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade|Minister for Foreign Affairs]]:

{{blockquote|
Dr Hillery is regarded as a powerhouse for ideas, one of the few members of Fianna Fáil who has new policies and is eager to implement them.
The greatest example of this has been in his present job, where he has perforce concentrated on [[Anglo-Irish relations]] and, in particular, the North. Policy in this field is determined primarily between him and the Taoiseach; and it is likely that the Fianna Fáil new line on the North owes much to Dr Hillery.<ref>{{cite news |last=Carroll |first=Joe |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2003/0103/1040226951325.html |title=British were impressed by Hillery's manner and intellectual capacity |newspaper=The Irish Times |date=3 January 2003 |access-date=2021-01-17 |archive-date=11 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121011061717/http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2003/0103/1040226951325.html |url-status=live }}</ref>}}