Hugh Coveney

Hugh Coveney (20 July 1935 – 14 March 1998) was an Irish Fine Gael politician who served as Minister of State at the Department of Finance from 1996 to 1997, Minister for the Marine and Minister for Defence from 1994 to 1995 and Lord Mayor of Cork from 1982 to 1983. He served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Cork South-Central constituency from 1981 to 1982, 1982 to 1987 and 1994 to 1998.^[1]

Coveney was born into one of Cork's prosperous "merchant prince" families in 1935.^[2] He was educated at Christian Brothers College, Cork, Clongowes Wood College and the College of Estate Management, London.^[3] He worked as a chartered quantity surveyor in his father's surveying firm, Patrick F. Coveney Associates (later P. F. Coveney & Son).^[3] He was subsequently a fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. He married Pauline Brown in 1969; and they had six sons and one daughter.^[3]

Coveney served as Lord Mayor of Cork from 1982 to 1983.^[4] He was first elected to Dáil Éireann as a Fine Gael TD for the Cork South-Central constituency at the 1981 general election.^[5] He lost his seat in the first general election of 1982 but regained it in the second election in the same year. He lost his seat again at the 1987 general election and did not contest the 1989 or 1992 general elections. He was elected to the Dáil again in the 1994 Cork South-Central by-election caused by the resignation of the Progressive Democrats TD Pat Cox.^[3]

He was appointed to cabinet in December 1994 under Taoiseach John Bruton as Minister for Defence and Minister for the Marine. However, he was demoted to a junior ministry in May 1995 after allegations of improper contact with businessmen. It was revealed that he had made a telephone call to Bord Gáis asking that his family firm be considered for a state contract.^[3]

Coveney's yacht Golden Apple of The Sun (designed by Cork-based designer Ron Holland) was a successful competitor in the Admiral's Cup in the 1970s.

A later 50-foot (15 m) yacht Golden Apple was used by the family for the "Sail Chernobyl" project. The family sailed around the world to raise €650,000 for the Chernobyl Children's Project, a charity which offers assistance to children affected by the 1986 Chernobyl disaster.

In March 1998, it became publicly known that the Moriarty Tribunal had questioned Coveney about whether he had a secret offshore account with Ansbacher Bank, a bank which had become notorious for facilitating tax-evasion. Ten days later, on 13 March 1998, Coveney visited his solicitor to change his will. The next day, 14 March 1998, Coveney died in a fall from a seaside cliff while out walking alone. His son, Simon Coveney, insisted that his father had never held an Ansbacher account.^[6] It later emerged that Hugh Coveney had $175,000 on deposit in the secret Cayman Island-based bank. The account was closed in 1979.^[7]

His son, Simon, was elected a TD to succeed his father in the resulting by-election on 3 November 1998.

• Families in the Oireachtas