From that state visit to his fidelity for Castro... the ups and downs of the Presidency
MICHAEL D Higgins has had a Presidency dotted with both controversies and notable accomplishments. Here are some of the highlights:
NO SECOND TERM? During his Labour Party-funded €325,000 campaign to be elected in 2011, he had promised he would not seek a second term. And then last year when he refused to confirm his promise still stood, journalists had to be asked to stop asking him about the prospects of a second term while he was on official visits.
TAKING A PAY CUT: The President took a voluntary 23.5% pay cut when he was elected. The reduction – which he committed to during the Áras race – meant his presidential pay fell by €76,493 yearly.
While in office he also did not draw down any pension entitlements arising from his tenure as a TD or senator.
STATE VISIT TO THE UK: Arguably one of the most historic things he did was become the first Irish President to pay a State visit to the UK. In his address to the Houses of Parliament – a first for our Head of State – Mr Higgins said the two countries now had a closeness that once seemed unachievable. His wide-ranging speech concluded with a 51-second standing ovation. PROMISSORY NOTE SIGN-OFF: Among the laws he signed off on was the liquidation of Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, formerly Anglo Irish Bank, after a shotgun Dáil debate.
To do it, however, he had flown back early from an official trip to Rome in February 2013. The law meant the government no longer had to make €3.1billion annual payments on a promissory note used to bail out Anglo.
It will instead drag the same payback out over decades, easing Exchequer pressure.
FIDELITY TO CASTRO: The President received criticism after he praised Fidel Castro as ‘a giant among global leaders’ upon the communist Cuban leader’s death in November 2016. A CHRISTMAS WITH NO
CHRIST? CALLERS to RTÉ’s Liveline in January 2014 reacted to his failure to mention the word ‘Christ’ or ‘Christianity’ in his festive address.