Barry Cowen
Barry Cowen | |
|---|---|
| Born | August 28, 1967 Ireland |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Years active | 1991–present |
| Known for | Member of the European Parliament (2024–present); Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine (June–July 2020); Teachta Dála (2011–2024) |
Barry Cowen (born 28 August 1967) is an Irish politician affiliated with Fianna Fáil, currently representing the Midlands–North-West as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since July 2024. His previous parliamentary service includes terms as a Teachta Dála (TD) for Laois–Offaly from 2011 to 2016, then for Offaly between 2016 and 2020, and again for Laois–Offaly from 2020 until 2024. Cowen briefly occupied the role of Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine from June to July 2020.
Early life
Barry Cowen hails from a politically active family; his father, Bernard Cowen, served as a TD, Senator, and Minister of State. His grandfather, Christy Cowen, was involved in local government as an Offaly County Councillor and was a member of Fianna Fáil’s National Executive. He is also the sibling of former Taoiseach Brian Cowen.
He is married and has four children, dedicating his professional life entirely to politics.
Political career
Cowen’s political journey began with his election to Offaly County Council representing the Tullamore electoral division, where he served from 1991 until 2011. In 2011, he was elected to the 31st Dáil for the Laois–Offaly constituency, succeeding his brother Brian Cowen.
Throughout his tenure in Fianna Fáil, Cowen held several spokesperson positions on the party’s front bench: Social Protection (2011–2012), Housing, Planning and Local Government (2012–2018), and Public Expenditure and Reform (2018–2020). He actively participated in government coalition negotiations during both 2016 and 2020.
In July 2020, it emerged that Cowen had a prior drink-driving conviction dating back to 2016, which had resulted in a €200 fine and a three-month driving disqualification. He issued an apology regarding this offence. The revelation sparked controversy surrounding alleged Garda information leaks, which Cowen publicly denounced as unlawful and harmful. Despite calls for his resignation, he declined to step down but was subsequently dismissed from his ministerial post by Taoiseach Micheál Martin in July 2020. Investigations into the source of the leaks persisted into 2021.
In July 2021, Cowen proposed forming a "modern centre-left" coalition between Fianna Fáil and the Labour Party ahead of forthcoming elections.
In March 2023, reports indicated that Cowen had failed to declare rental earnings from 32 acres of farmland in accordance with Standards in Public Office Commission regulations; he pledged to update his Dáil Register of Interests accordingly.
Later in 2023, Cowen opposed extending the COVID-19 eviction moratorium and made a contentious comparison likening it to "making sweets free for children," for which he subsequently apologized.
Ahead of the 2024 European Parliament elections, Cowen secured Fianna Fáil’s nomination for the Midlands–North-West constituency by narrowly surpassing senators Niall Blaney and Lisa Chambers. Both were later included on Fianna Fáil’s candidate list. He was successfully elected to one of the five available seats and commenced his term on 17 July 2024.