Senator Maurice Hayes has been presented with the European of the Year Award.
The President, Mrs Mary McAleese presented Senator Hayes with his award at a ceremony in the Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin today.
The award, organised by the European Movement and sponsored by Aer Rianta, was made in recognition of his work as chairman of the National Forum on Europe since October 2001.
The other finalists were Mary Davis, Dr Miriam Hederman O'Brien, Minister Dick Roche TD, John Cushnahan MEP and Brian Crowley MEP.
Previous winners have included Pat Cox, David Byrne, Ray MacSharry, Peter Sutherland, Adi Roche, Charles Haughey, Albert Reynolds and Michael Smurfit.
A native of Co. Down, Senator Hayes studied English at Queen's University and taught for seven years in Downpatrick.
He later became a civil servant and acted as Permanent Secretary to the Northern Ireland Department for Health and Social Services from 1983-87.
He was a member of the Patten Commission on Policing in Northern Ireland and became a Senator in the Oireachtas on the nomination of the current Taoiseach in 1997.