There is much interest in the forthcoming book from the outspoken Labour politician Barry Desmond. Desmond is 65 and recently retired after six years as our member on the EU Court of Auditors in Luxembourg, the post now held by Maire Geoghegan-Quinn.
He describes his book, due from New Island on October 24th, as a political memoir and an exercise in political reflection. He has been working on it since he left the Dail after 20 years as a TD for Dun Laoghaire, to become an MEP for Dublin. It is a comprehensive analysis of events during his 35 years in politics starting from 1965, when he was director of elections for Denis Larkin. He recounts his experiences with a huge range of national politicians, from Jack Lynch and Noel Browne to Charlie Haughey and Dick Spring. The person he admired most, he says, is Lynch, a fellow Corkman.
Desmond's time as a junior minister in Finance in 1981/ 82, during a period of budget mayhem, is interesting, he says, but the most fascinating (indeed, sometimes excruciating) experience, was when Labour was in government and he was Minister for Health from 1982 to 1987. He is known as a great man for keeping documents, so his read on that coalition will interest those contemplating a similar set-up today. Because of the man himself, his distrust of coalitions and his meticulous records, the book is expected to be controversial and as interesting as the autobiography due next year from Des O'Malley. The manuscript has already been through the lawyers, which whets the appetite, and will be launched by Prof Tom Garvan of UCD, where Desmond (saying he is refusing to bow to retirement), is to take up an honorary fellowship in the department of politics.
The title, Finally and in Conclusion, has led to much laughter in Labour circles. Desmond was known for using the phrase at Labour parliamentary party meetings and then speaking on for another half hour.