Liam Aylward

Liam Aylward
File:Flickr - DEEEP Project - MEP Liam Aylward, Ireland.jpg
Member of the European Parliament
In office June 2004 – May 2014
Constituency	East
Teachta Dála
In office June 1977 – May 2007
Constituency	Carlow–Kilkenny
Personal details
Born	(1952-09-27) 27 September 1952 County Kilkenny, Ireland
Nationality	Irish
Political party	Fianna Fáil

Liam Aylward (born 27 September 1952) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician. He was a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Carlow–Kilkenny constituency from 1977 to 2007, and an ALDE Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for the East constituency from 2004 to 2014,

Liam Aylward was born in Mullinavat, County Kilkenny in 1952. He was educated at St Kierans College, Kilkenny. He worked as a laboratory technician before getting involved in politics. He was elected to Kilkenny County Council in 1974, serving on that authority until 1992.

Aylward was first elected to Dáil Éireann as a Fianna Fáil TD for the Carlow–Kilkenny constituency at the 1977 general election in what proved to be a landslide for Fianna Fáil. Since then he has served as Minister of State at the Department of Energy (1988–1989), at the Department of Education (1992–1994) and at the Department of Agriculture and Food (2002–2004). In 1998 Aylward was the subject of a complaint to Oireachtas authorities for groping a female usher in the Dáil bar, for which he apologised. In 2004 he was elected to the European Parliament in the East constituency for Fianna Fáil, which was then part of the Union for a Europe of Nations.

Since the 2009 European Parliament election, Fianna Fáil is affiliated with the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE). Aylward is a member of the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development, the delegation for relations with Mercosur and the delegation to the Euro-Latin American Parliamentary Assembly. Aylward is also a substitute member of the Committee on Culture and Education and the delegation to the ACP–EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly.

Because dual mandate legislation forbids Members of the European Parliament from seeking re-election as members of their national legislatures, Liam Aylward retired from national politics at the 2007 general election. He was succeeded as a Fianna Fáil TD by his brother, Bobby Aylward. He is the son of the Bob Aylward who served as a Fianna Fáil senator.

Aylward has opted not to receive a ministerial pension but still receives annual pension payments of around €50,000 from his time as a TD.

He retired from politics at the 2014 European Parliament election.

See also

• Families in the Oireachtas

External links

• European Parliament profile

Oireachtas
Preceded by Desmond Governey (Fine Gael)	Fianna Fáil Teachta Dála for Carlow–Kilkenny 1977–2007	Succeeded by Bobby Aylward (Fianna Fáil)
Political offices
New office	Minister of State for Animal Health and Welfare and Customer Service 2002–2004	Succeeded by Office abolished
European Parliament
Preceded by Jim Fitzsimons	Member of the European Parliament for East 2004–2014	Succeeded by Constituency abolished