Michael McDowell’s son Hugh joins Renua Ireland

Former tánaiste and ex-minister for justice Michael McDowell's son Hugh has been hired as a parliamentary assistant to Renua Ireland leader Lucinda Creighton.

Hugh McDowell, a trainee barrister and auditor of the Law Students’ Debating Society of Ireland (LSDSI) at the King’s Inns, began working with Renua Ireland as a volunteer.

A party spokesman confirmed he was now working as a parliamentary assistant to Ms Creighton.

“Hugh is a valuable member of the team. He’s bringing his expertise in FoI [Freedom of Information] and PQs [Parliamentary Questions] to a wide range of areas,” the spokesman said.

Writing in The Irish Times in 2010, Hugh McDowell said the experience of having a family member at cabinet level throughout adolescence had magnified his sense of how disconnected the political system was from his peers.

In the piece, which you can read here, he said he admired Ms Creighton "for her refusal to merely toe the party line on issues such as electoral reform and political donations".

He was writing shortly after the former Fine Gael minister of state for European affairs had forfeited both her ministerial office and parliamentary party membership by voting against the Government during the abortion legislation debate.

However, Hugh McDowell also said he was disappointed by Ms Creighton's "uninspiring" performance in RTÉ television's The Frontline programme the previous February. He complained she had used flashcards, "despite being a trained lawyer".