John Boland (Fine Gael politician)

John Boland
Minister for Health
In office 20 January – 10 March 1987
Taoiseach	Garret FitzGerald
Preceded by	Barry Desmond
Succeeded by	Rory O'Hanlon
Minister for the Environment
In office 14 February 1986 – 10 March 1987
Taoiseach	Garret FitzGerald
Preceded by	Liam Kavanagh
Succeeded by	Pádraig Flynn
Minister for the Public Service
In office 14 December 1982 – 14 February 1986
Taoiseach	Garret FitzGerald
Preceded by	Gene Fitzgerald
Succeeded by	Ruairi Quinn
Minister for Education
In office 30 June 1981 – 9 March 1982
Taoiseach	Garret FitzGerald
Preceded by	John Wilson
Succeeded by	Martin O'Donoghue
Teachta Dála
In office June 1981 – June 1989
Constituency	Dublin North
In office June 1977 – June 1981
Constituency	Dublin County North
Senator
In office 5 November 1969 – 16 June 1977
Constituency	Labour Panel
Personal details
Born	(1944-11-30)30 November 1944 Dublin, Ireland
Died	14 August 2000(2000-08-14) (aged 55) Skerries, Dublin, Ireland
Political party	Fine Gael
Spouse	Catherine Kennedy ​ (m. 1974)​
Children	2
Education	Synge Street CBS
Alma mater	University College Dublin King's Inns

John James Boland (30 November 1944 – 14 August 2000) was an Irish Fine Gael politician who served as Minister for Health from January 1987 to March 1987, Minister for the Environment from 1986 to 1987, Minister for the Public Service from 1982 to 1986 and Minister for Education from 1981 to 1982. He served as a Teachta Dála (TD) from 1977 to 1989. He also served as a Senator for the Labour Panel from 1969 to 1977.

Biography

Boland was born in Dublin in 1944 in Terenure, Dublin, the eldest of two sons and one daughter of Charles Boland and his wife Kathleen Boland (née Whitty), both of whom were civil servants. He was educated at Synge Street CBS school and University College Dublin (UCD), where he received a Bachelor of Commerce degree. While in UCD, he served as editor of student publication, Awake.

He first held political office in 1967, when he was elected to Dublin County Council at age 23. He served on that authority until 1981. In 1971, he became the council's youngest ever chairperson at age 26. While a councillor, he was associated with several controversial planning decisions. In 1974, he married Catherine Kennedy; they had one son and one daughter.

Boland first ran for the Dáil Éireann at the 1969 general election, but was unsuccessful. He did secure election to Seanad Éireann on the Labour Panel, becoming the youngest ever Senator at the time. He was re-elected to the Seanad in 1973.

Boland was elected to Dáil on his third attempt at the 1977 general election as a Fine Gael TD for the Dublin County North constituency. He retained his seat at each subsequent election until losing it in the 1989 election

On becoming Fine Gael leader, Garret FitzGerald appointed Boland to the Opposition front bench as spokesperson on Health; he later served as spokesperson on the Environment.

In 1981, Fine Gael formed a government with the Labour Party, with Boland becoming Minister for Education. In this capacity he achieved the landmark abolition of corporal punishment in schools.

Boland later served in a range of portfolios in Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald's second government. As Minister for the Public Service, and despite much opposition both covert and overt from his civil servants, Boland introduced several significant reforms including merit-based promotion (instead of promotions being solely seniority-based as before) and open competitions for the most senior civil service jobs.

At the time, civil servants did not have to give their names when dealing with the public and, more often than not, refused to. Boland changed this so that civil servants could no longer refuse to provide their names, ensuring greater transparency and accountability.

As Minister for the Public Service he appointed Ireland's first Ombudsman, Michael Mills.

Boland subsequently served as Minister for the Environment. He led the procurement, on behalf of the State, of Malahide Castle, Ardgillan Demesne, Newbridge House and Farm, Skerries Mills and Red Island, Skerries. He also established the first National Parks Strategy.

After politics, Boland qualified as a barrister and practised on the Dublin and eastern circuits. He also wrote a political column for the Sunday Business Post.

After a long illness with cancer, Boland died on 14 August 2000. Many people paid tribute upon his death, including former Taoisigh FitzGerald and John Bruton. Fitzgerald stated that Boland had done more than any Minister in the history of the State to reform the public service, while Bruton remarked that Boland was "one of the most courageous, imaginative and innovative politicians" he had known.