Harry Blaney

Harry Blaney (18 February 1928 – 29 April 2013) was an Irish politician from Fanad, County Donegal, best known as a leading figure in Independent Fianna Fáil (IFF), the breakaway organisation founded by his brother Neil Blaney following his 1970 expulsion from Fianna Fáil over the Arms Crisis. A long-serving Donegal County Councillor and Teachta Dála (TD) for Donegal North-East between 1997 and 2002, Blaney was noted for his intense local focus, Irish republican sympathies, and conservative social views.

Born into a prominent political family, Blaney helped build a formidable electoral machine in north Donegal alongside his brother during the 1950s. After Neil entered the cabinet in 1957, Harry succeeded him on the county council, where he was known for strong advocacy of local infrastructure, housing, and rural development. Following Neil’s death in 1995, Harry became leader of Independent Fianna Fáil and was elected to the Dáil two years later, where his support helped sustain the Fianna Fáil–Progressive Democrats coalition government.

Blaney’s politics combined traditional republicanism with populist localism. He opposed the Anglo-Irish Agreement and extradition to Northern Ireland, supported recognition of political status for republican prisoners, and objected to the Good Friday Agreement on the grounds that it weakened Ireland’s constitutional claim to Northern Ireland. Socially, he was conservative, opposing divorce, abortion, and contraceptives. He also denied that sexual abuse by Catholic priests had occurred in Donegal. Despite limited parliamentary activity, he retained influence through his reputation as a constituency politician.

Blaney remained active in local politics until his death, and his family’s influence in Donegal continued through his son Niall Blaney, who served as a Fianna Fáil TD and later as a senator. The Harry Blaney Bridge, opened in 2009 to connect the Fanad and Rosguill peninsulas, was named in his honour.