Minister for Posts and Telegraphs

For the comparable French agency, see Minister of Posts, Telegraphs, and Telephones.

The original logo of the department, including the Tironian et symbol, is still often seen on earlier postboxes and other older property.

Pre-1984 manhole cover showing the P⁊T logo

The Minister for Posts and Telegraphs (Irish: Aire Puist agus Telegrafa; sometimes called the P&T or stylised the P+T) was a senior post in the government of the Irish Free State and Ireland from 1924 to 1984, when the post and the department was abolished.

The office of Minister for Posts and Telegraphs was created in the Ministers and Secretaries Act, 1924, which reorganised the Irish system of government. It assumed the role in the Irish Free State of that formerly exercised by the Postmaster General of the United Kingdom. Legislation of 1831 had amalgamated the offices of Postmaster General of Great Britain and Postmasters General of Ireland, a jointly held role in the administration of the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.

File:Minister for Posts and Telegraphs of Ireland.png

This later and final version of the logo of the department was most commonly associated with the orange and white postal vans.

The Ministers and Secretaries Act, Section (1), Part (ix) defines the department's role:

The Department of Posts and Telegraphs which shall comprise the administration and business generally of public services in connection with posts, telegraphs, and telephones, and all powers, duties and functions connected with the same, and shall include in particular the business, powers, duties and functions of the branches and officers of the public services specified in the Eighth Part of the Schedule to this Act, and of which Department the head shall be, and shall be styled, an t-Aire Puist agus Telegrafa or (in English) the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs.

— Ministers and Secretaries Act, Section (1), Part (ix)

The Minister for Posts and Telegraphs was responsible for Ireland's postal and telecommunications services from 1924 to 1984. At its height time the department was one of the largest civil service departments in Ireland. The reform of the sector and department began in 1978 with the creation of the Posts and Telegraphs Review Group. This led after a report was delivered in 1979, to the creation of the ad-hoc Interim Board for Posts (An Bord Poist), chaired by Feargal Quinn, and the Interim Board for Telecommunications (An Bord Telecom), chaired by Michael Smurfit. These two boards continued to sit until An Post and Telecom Éireann, respectively, replaced them. These state-sponsored bodies were created in 1984.

The Minister of Posts and Telegraphs ceased to exist at that time, and its powers and responsibilities were transferred to the newly created office of Minister for Communications; this was one of the largest reorganisations of the civil service in modern times with it having a workforce of about 30,000 prior to dissolution. As a result, the number of civil service employees nearly halved overnight because of the transfer of personnel.

List of office-holders

Postmaster General 1922–1924
No.	Name	Term of office		Party
1.	James J. Walsh	1 April 1922	2 June 1924		Cumann na nGaedheal
Minister for Posts and Telegraphs 1924–1984
No.	Name	Term of office		Party
	James J. Walsh	2 June 1924	12 October 1927		Cumann na nGaedheal
2.	Ernest Blythe	12 October 1927	9 March 1932		Cumann na nGaedheal
3.	Joseph Connolly	9 March 1932	8 February 1933		Fianna Fáil
4.	Gerald Boland	8 February 1933	11 November 1936		Fianna Fáil
5.	Oscar Traynor	11 November 1936	8 September 1939		Fianna Fáil
6.	Thomas Derrig	8 September 1939	27 September 1939		Fianna Fáil
7.	Patrick Little	27 September 1939	18 February 1948		Fianna Fáil
8.	James Everett	18 February 1948	13 June 1951		National Labour Party
9.	Erskine H. Childers (1st time)	13 June 1951	2 June 1954		Fianna Fáil
10.	Michael Keyes	2 June 1954	20 March 1957		Labour Party
11.	Neil Blaney	20 March 1957	4 December 1957		Fianna Fáil
12.	John Ormonde	4 December 1957	23 June 1959		Fianna Fáil
13.	Michael Hilliard	23 June 1959	21 April 1965		Fianna Fáil
14.	Joseph Brennan	21 April 1965	10 November 1966		Fianna Fáil
	Erskine H. Childers (2nd time)	10 November 1966	2 July 1969		Fianna Fáil
15.	Patrick Lalor	2 July 1969	9 May 1970		Fianna Fáil
16.	Gerry Collins	9 May 1970	14 March 1973		Fianna Fáil
17.	Conor Cruise O'Brien	14 March 1973	5 July 1977		Labour Party
18.	Pádraig Faulkner	5 July 1977	11 December 1979		Fianna Fáil
19.	Albert Reynolds	12 December 1979	30 June 1981		Fianna Fáil
20.	Patrick Cooney	30 June 1981	9 March 1982		Fine Gael
21.	John Wilson	9 March 1982	14 December 1982		Fianna Fáil
22.	Jim Mitchell	14 December 1982	2 January 1984		Fine Gael