Joe McHugh
Joe McHugh | |
|---|---|
McHugh in 2017 | |
| Chair of the Committee on European Union Affairs | |
| In office 15 September 2020 – 8 November 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Michael Healy-Rae |
| Minister for Education and Skills | |
| In office 16 October 2018 – 27 June 2020 | |
| Taoiseach | Leo Varadkar |
| Preceded by | Richard Bruton |
| Succeeded by | Norma Foley |
| Minister of State | |
| 2017–2018 | Government Chief Whip |
| 2017–2018 | Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht |
| 2016–2018 | Taoiseach |
| 2016–2017 | Foreign Affairs and Trade |
| 2014–2016 | Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht |
| 2014–2016 | Communications, Energy and Natural Resources |
| Teachta Dála | |
| In office February 2016 – November 2024 | |
| Constituency | Donegal |
| In office May 2007 – February 2016 | |
| Constituency | Donegal North-East |
| Senator | |
| In office 12 September 2002 – 24 May 2007 | |
| Constituency | Administrative Panel |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 16 July 1971 Carrigart, County Donegal, Ireland |
| Party | Fine Gael (until 2022) |
| Other political affiliations | Independent (2022–24) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Relatives | Tom Enright (father-in-law) |
| Alma mater | Maynooth University |
Joe McHugh (born 16 July 1971) is an Irish former Fine Gael politician from Carrigart, County Donegal. He served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Donegal North-East constituency from 2007 to 2016 and the Donegal constituency from 2016 to 2024. He served as a Minister of State from 2014 to 2018 and as Minister for Education and Skills from 2018 to 2020. He chaired the Committee on European Union Affairs from 2020 to 2024.
McHugh worked as a teacher and youth worker before winning election to Donegal County Council in the 1999 local elections. Elected to Seanad Éireann in 2002 as a senator for the Administrative Panel, he won a seat in Dáil Éireann at the 2007 general election. In 2014, he became Minister of State with responsibility for Gaeltacht Affairs and Natural Resources, and from 2017 to 2018, he was Government Chief Whip. Appointed Minister for Education and Skills in October 2018, he oversaw the closure of schools and the cancellation of the 2020 Junior Cycle and Leaving Certificate examinations due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. He was not appointed to the Cabinet following the formation of a new government in June 2020, and he declined an appointment as Minister of State.
In May 2022, McHugh announced that he would not stand at the next general election, saying he wished to spend more time with his family. In July 2022, he resigned the Fine Gael party whip to vote for an opposition bill on the defective block crisis, after which he continued as an independent TD until the dissolution of the 33rd Dáil in November 2024.