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Denis Foley
Denis Foley
Teachta Dála
	In office; November 1992 – May 2002
	In office; June 1981 – June 1989
Constituency	Kerry North
Senator
	In office; 1 November 1989 – 25 November 1992
Constituency	Industrial and Commercial Panel
Personal details
Born	14 May 1934; Tralee, County Kerry, Ireland
Died	26 October 2013 (aged 79); Tralee, County Kerry, Ireland
Political party	Fianna Fáil
Spouse	Hanna Foley (m. 1960)
Children	4, including Norma

Denis Foley (14 May 1934 – 26 October 2013) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Kerry North constituency from 1981 to 1989 and 1992 to 2002 and a Senator for the Industrial and Commercial Panel from 1989 to 1992.^[1]

Biography

A former rates collector,^[1] in the 1970s, Foley successfully ran The Central Ballroom in Ballybunion and the ballroom of The Brandon Hotel. He also had an interest in The Hillgrove Hotel in Dingle at one stage, and had extensive property holdings in Tralee.^[2]

Foley was a member of Kerry County Council from 1979,^[2] and was elected to Dáil Éireann at the 1981 general election. He retained his seat through three general elections until his defeat at the 1989 general election^[1] by party rival Tom McEllistrim (who, unlike Foley, was a supporter of the then leader of Fianna Fáil, Charles Haughey).^[2] He was then elected to the 19th Seanad as a Senator for the Industrial and Commercial Panel, and regained his Dáil seat at the 1992 general election, holding it until he retired at the 2002 general election.^[3] His daughter, Norma, unsuccessfully sought the Fianna Fáil nomination to contest the seat in 2002;^[4] she was selected for the 2007 general election, but did not win a seat. She stayed in local politics, but won a seat in the Dáil at the 2020 general election for the Kerry constituency.^[5]

Following revelations that he had held an offshore account with Ansbacher Bank to avoid tax,^[6] Denis Foley resigned from Fianna Fáil on 9 February 2000, becoming an Independent TD.^[7] He had previously resigned from the Dáil Public Accounts Committee^[8] (on which he had been involved in the questioning of an official of the Ansbacher bank in which he held an undeclared deposit)^[9] and in May 2000, he became the first TD to receive a penalty for breaching the Ethics in Public Office Act 1995; he was suspended from the Dáil for 14 days.^[10]

He died on 26 October 2013.^[11]^[12]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "Denis Foley". Oireachtas Members Database. Archived from the original on 8 November 2018. Retrieved 18 February 2008.
^ ^a ^b ^c Miriam Donohoe and Kevin Rafter (28 January 2000). "Little-known deputy owns shops and accommodation". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 9 October 2012. Retrieved 18 February 2008.
^ "Denis Foley". Electionsireland.org. Archived from the original on 30 August 2007. Retrieved 18 February 2008.
^ Anne Lucey (25 June 2001). "Foley fails to win Kerry North nomination". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 9 October 2012. Retrieved 18 February 2008.
^ "Norma Foley". Electionsireland.org. Archived from the original on 17 June 2007. Retrieved 18 February 2008.
^ Roddy O'Sullivan (4 February 2000). "Fianna Fáil TD knew about offshore account since the 1980s". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 9 October 2012. Retrieved 18 February 2008.
^ "Foley resigns from Fianna Fáil parliamentary party". RTÉ News. 9 February 2000. Archived from the original on 30 October 2004. Retrieved 18 February 2008.
^ "Foley's prompt decision to quit has helped ease political fallout". The Irish Times. 28 January 2000. Archived from the original on 12 October 2012. Retrieved 18 February 2008.
^ "The eloquence of Mr Foley's silence". The Irish Times. 29 January 2000. Archived from the original on 9 October 2012. Retrieved 18 February 2008.
^ "Motion to suspend Foley approved". The Irish Times. 24 May 2000. Archived from the original on 9 October 2012. Retrieved 18 February 2008.
^ "Former Fianna Fáil TD Denis Foley dies". RTÉ News. 27 October 2013. Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 27 October 2013.
^ O'Regan, Michael (27 October 2013). "FF leader pays tribute to two former colleagues who died at the weekend". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 28 October 2013. Retrieved 28 October 2013.