Eamon Ryan

He was re-elected to the Dáil at the 2007 general election. On 13 June 2007, following the 2007 election, the Green Party held a special convention, where they voted in favour of entering into a coalition government with Fianna Fáil and the Progressive Democrats. Ryan was appointed to the cabinet by Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, as Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources when the 30th Dáil sat the following day.

As Minister, he stated his priorities would be to improve upon the changes underway in the Irish energy sector, with strong emphasis on aiding the adaptation of renewables and building retrofitting. He also aimed to enhance communications infrastructure where Ireland had fallen behind other countries.

During Ryan's period in office, installed wind capacity in Ireland doubled, and by 2010 the average daily energy derived from renewable sources (as a percentage of total demand) had increased to 17%, peaking at 42%.[7][8][9] He also committed Ireland to the European Super Grid programme in 2009 and announced major government investment in Marine energy research projects.[10] Government schemes were expanded for home energy retrofitting as uptake increased,[11] the National Broadband Scheme was completed,[12] a Broadband for Schools Scheme launched,[13] and a national electric vehicle and chargepoint initiative was announced in conjunction with the ESB Electric Ireland and Peugeot Citroën, which was subsequently implemented by the new government.[14][15]

Environmental activists Shell to Sea and its spokesperson Maura Harrington, criticised Ryan for joining Fianna Fáil in coalition as the terms of the programme for government did not include a reversal or renegotiation of the proposed gas pipeline and refinery at Broadhaven Bay, County Mayo.[16][17] Before entering into government, Ryan visibly supported the aims of the Shell to Sea campaign and attended their protests.[18] Ryan was also criticised by Shell to Sea for failing to launch an independent review of the decision, as stipulated by the Green Party in a motion passed at their annual convention in 2007.[19][20]

Ryan resigned as Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources on 23 January 2011, when the Green Party withdrew from government.[21] The following day he helped broker an agreement with Fine Gael and the Labour Party which ensured the passing of the 2011 Finance bill, prior to the holding of the general election on the 25 February 2011. He subsequently lost his seat at the 2011 general election receiving 6.8% of the vote.[22] As part of his pension Ryan will receive a lump sum of €110,000 and an annual pension of €51,000 when he is 65, in 2028.[23][24][25]

He was one of three candidates to contest the subsequent Green Party leadership election of May 2011. He was elected leader on 27 May 2011, succeeding John Gormley.[26]

In 2012, he became an associate with E3G working on an assessment of the development potential of the North Seas Offshore Grid Initiative in a project which was supported by the European Climate Foundation and the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation. In 2013, he organised two climate gatherings which brought international climate experts to Ireland to examine what new narratives are needed to increase public support for action on the climate issue.

He ran as the Green Party candidate in the Dublin constituency at the 2014 European Parliament election, but was not elected. He was elected a TD for the Dublin Bay South constituency in the 2016 general election. In 2019 Ryan called for wolves to be reintroduced to Ireland.[27] Fine Gael rejected this suggestion, with Josepha Madigan, the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht saying that her department had no plans to reintroduce wolves into the country, saying that the "large predator" doing so would do damage to farming.[28] He reiterated the following January that he would like to see them introduced in his lifetime.[29] Also in 2019, comments he made on car use in rural Ireland which were published in an article by The Irish Times was criticised online. The newspaper also stated that Ryan suggested that a village of 300 people needs just 30 cars to operate. In the article, Ryan stated people could walk to a pick-up point or cycle. However, some readers had reacted angrily to the statements, saying that the Green Party leader was out-of-touch with rural Ireland, pointing out that he lives in South Dublin. Responding to the criticism, the party had taken issue with the headline, and in a statement said the original headline ('"You don't need to own a car to live in rural Ireland" - Green Party T.D') had caused “a flood of online fury – and rightly so, because a suggestion like that would be ridiculous and impractical”.[30]

In 2020, under his leadership, the Green Party had its best election result in its history so far in the general election of that year. In the 33rd Dail, a speech he made on growing food in the event of a supply crisis went viral online, particularly his comment "we'll have our salads ready to go!"[31] In June 2020, he was criticised online, particularly by Green Party councillors, for his use of the phrase "you nigger" when quoting director Sean Gallen on his experiences of racism.[32] Gallen himself said that Ryan's intentions were "really good" as he tried "to bring up this big issue of racism within an Irish context". [33]