By Andrew Bushe
DUBLIN — Jim Tunney, one of Fianna Fail’s longest-serving TDs, died last week. He was 78.
Tunney was perhaps best known as the public face and voice of the party during the stormy period when there were repeated attempts to oust former Taoiseach Charles Haughey.
After a period as a civil servant, teacher and headmaster, Tunney followed his father into politics and was TD in Dublin North-West for 23 years before losing his seat in 1992. His father, also called James, was a Labor TD in 1943-44.
Since he was first elected to the Dail in 1969, he was lord mayor of Dublin, twice Leas Ceann Comhairle of the Dail, a junior minister for education on three occasions, and co-chairman of the Anglo-Irish interparliamentary body.
He took a particular interest in youth and sports, but it is as chairman of the Fianna Fail party for 10 years beginning in 1982 that he will be best remembered. It was then that he astutely fielded difficult questions during internal convulsions in the party and a number of motions of no confidence in Haughey.
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Taoiseach Bertie Ahern said last week that the Finglas-born TD was very proud of being a “Dub.” Ahern was Tunney’s runningmate as the “junior” on the ticket when he first ran for the Dail 25 years ago. “He was a great person to work with. I will miss him,” Ahern said.
The taoiseach said Tunney had been shocked by some of the revelations in recent years reflecting diminishing standards in politics. He said Tunney believed in public service and always set a personal example of probity.
“He was a very straight person and had very high standards,” Ahern said. “He was very critical of things that happened over the last number of years.”