US wary of enigmatic minister

The former tánaiste and Labour Party leader, Michael O'Leary, who was minister for labour in the Fine Gael-Labour government of 1973-1977, was the subject of a confidential report from the US embassy in Dublin which has recently become available in the US National Archives in Washington.

On April 6th, 1973, the embassy reported: "Michael O'Leary was first elected to the Dáil in 1965 when he was only 29 years old. Despite his youth, he quickly earned the respect of his colleagues and became identified as a political with a very bright future. He had an attractive, informal personality, spoke well in Dáil debates and worked hard at his homework.

"O'Leary has, nonetheless, a personality problem which has puzzled a number of observers who know him well. He has often been erratic, with visible ups and downs. When he visited the US on a leader grant in 1970 he proved extremely difficult to programme, sometimes showing up late, or never, for scheduled appointments.

"We gather, however, that his erratic periods of behaviour may be accounted for by a genuine mental problem. We hear that he once had a breakdown and has continued to be troubled by periods of depression. We also understand, however, that he has worked on this problem and seems to be getting it under control. It has certainly not slowed down his career.

"From talking to O'Leary we have the impression that he is sincerely concerned about the problems of social justice, especially those involving workers and youth. On first impression, his manner can seem so casual as to be flippant, but it conceals a sense of commitment."

When O'Leary died unexpectedly in August of last year at the age of 70, the following tribute was paid to him by the former taoiseach, Liam Cosgrave, under whom he served in government: "I heard with regret of the untimely death of Michael O'Leary. His career in politics reflected in many ways his personality. When he applied his talents he was quite skilful and had successful achievements as minister for labour, piloting a considerable volume of progressive legislation. In dealing with labour problems he was effective, where his trade union experience proved valuable. He was easy to work with, although at times his mercurial personality made it difficult to find him, but when located his good humour eased the situation."