Profile: Martin Cullen - Minister for the Environment and 40-a-day man determined to protect his right to smoke: He has a reputation as a man Fianna Fáil rolls out to cloud an issue, but there was no mistaking Martin Cullen's stance on the planned ban on smoking, writes Arthur Beesley, Political Reporter.
Martin Cullen returned last Saturday from his holidays in Italy and France for a three-day stint as the Cabinet's representative in Dublin. With other Ministers on their holidays - and after last summer, when nobody seemed to be around to put forward its view when news of spending cuts began to filter out - his brief was to defend the Government.
Instead the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government derided its plan to ban smoking in pubs, complaining that it smacked of US political correctness. "I suppose I'm closer to Berlin than Boston on smoking and obviously like having a couple of cigarettes with a cup of coffee," he said. The remarks made front-page headlines. They would have even were there no midsummer dearth of news.
Cullen (48), who is seen as one of the busier Cabinet members, later claimed he spoke "tongue in cheek". But only a naive minister would expect public reservations about important policy decisions to stay on the inside pages. Cullen made his views known to The Irish Times and another newspaper. He is not naive.
The comments put Cullen at glaring odds with Micheál Martin, the Minister for Health and Children, who was on holidays this week with his family. Martin has had a rough time politically since the start of the year. Some senior figures in Fianna Fáil are therefore questioning why Cullen chose implicitly to attack him during his break from the air of perpetual crisis pervading the health service.
As a 40-a-day man with a fondness for Player's untipped cigarettes, Cullen is indeed sensitive to the demands of his fellow smokers. He no longer takes a drink, but he knows the proposed ban in pubs is not going down well in the licensed trade. Warning of huge job losses, the "hospitality" lobby has mounted a significant campaign against the plan, which is due to come into effect in January.
With Fianna Fáil backbenchers rumbling in private about the ban, Cullen's remarks lit the touchpaper. Some 16 of the party's TDs are now calling for compromise and five others have declined publicly to support Martin. That amounts to a quarter of the party's membership in the Dáil.
The move to ban smoking in pubs has already been sanctioned by the Government, however. The Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, has endorsed Martin's line that the move is essential for health reasons.
As Cullen is bound by the principle of collective responsibility at Cabinet, there has been particular surprise at his remarks.
Questions arise. Was Cullen guilty of ill discipline? Or did he have any sanction for remarks that were always going to rankle with Martin?
Sources close to Cullen insist there is no unseen agenda at work. One person said: "There is no Machiavellian plot here. He is his own man. He's held this view on this matter for some time."
If that is the case, then Cullen's remarks and the public stance of anti-ban TDs raise valid questions about discipline in the Government. "This is grossly unfair to the Minister for Health," said one TD. "I think it's terrible that this is out in the public domain. If people have problems they should be discussed at the parliamentary party."
Although Cullen's remarks have been supported by some observers - many of them smokers - his public presentation of Cabinet disunity has led others to question his judgment.
Cullen likes to present the image of an energetic, no-nonsense politician with a sure touch. He is ambitious. From a political family - his father and grandfather were independent mayors of Waterford city - he can be very decisive.
His defection to Fianna Fáil from the Progressive Democrats in 1994 is the prime example. Although his family had Fianna Fáil sympathies and Cullen moved on the fringes of the party at the start of his political career, it was with the PDs that he established himself.
His move was highly calculated and planned long in advance with Albert Reynolds, then Fianna Fáil's leader. Cullen had backed Pat Cox in his unsuccessful bid against Mary Harney for leadership of the PDs. He left for Fianna Fáil soon after Cox went independent, delivering a critical blow to Harney in the early phase of her leadership.
The manoeuvre also demonstrated Cullen's fondness for publicity, which has not dimmed. He is more available to the media than many Ministers. A TD in a rival party, who claims to admire Cullen and be friendly with him, said: "Many don't like him because he comes across as a complete waffler. Fianna Fáil roll him out to muddy the waters."
Cullen would no doubt challenge that assertion. He has a professional background in sales and a natural capacity to make a pitch. He is a good advocate. A former auctioneer, he also worked as a sales rep for a drinks company.
Yet the offensive against the smoking ban was counterproductive for another reason. In the environment job, Cullen requires the support of his Cabinet and parliamentary colleagues if he is to introduce waste incineration, designate landfill sites and introduce a carbon tax.
Each issue is highly sensitive politically, with Cullen likely to come under pressure whenever he attempts to introduce any unpopular measure. He will need all the help he can get.
Since his arrival in environment, however, he has achieved a notable success that eluded Noel Dempsey, his predecessor. Against a backdrop of dissent from backbenchers he abolished the dual mandate that let TDs also sit on local councils. It is ironic, therefore, that he is now cosying up to backbench anger about the smoking ban.
There are other initiatives. Cullen recently delivered a Bill to improve tenants' rights in rented accommodation. Though a non-environmentalist Minister for the Environment, he also has plans to tax chewing gum, bank-machine receipts and fast-food wrappings. He has not been damaged politically by the continuing rise in property prices, an area that is also in his bailiwick. There are whispers of a major initiative on planning.
Cullen has a wide agenda, but he came to the Department of the Environment with a reputation for achieving results during his time as Minister of State for Finance. He had responsibility for the Office of Public Works.
Although Cullen recently ruled out buying Lissadell House, the Co Sligo childhood home of Countess Markievicz, for the State, in his old job he oversaw the refurbishment of Farmleigh House and the development of a new wing at Leinster House.
His appointment to such a senior ministerial post last summer was the biggest promotion from the ranks of the junior ministers, many of whom were disappointed not to be selected for a Cabinet place.
Cullen is separated from his wife, Dorthe, who is Danish. She lives in Waterford with their four children. Now in another relationship, Cullen sees his children regularly.
There were celebrations in Waterford at the selection of the city's first minister. Some said it was akin to the county winning an All-Ireland title.
Something of a go-getter, Cullen topped the poll in Waterford last year with more than 8,500 first-preference votes. This was in marked contrast to his election in 1992, when he took the last seat in the county with Workers Party transfers. He had lost his seat in the previous election, in 1989. He received almost €35,000 in political donations last year, from Waterford sources mainly, making him the biggest recipient in the Dáil.
Although many in Waterford are proud of Cullen, they also note that a promise to provide a radiology service was central to his election campaign. None has been delivered.
For that, others point to Cullen's commitment to the development of the north quays area of the city and to a new water and sewerage scheme as a demonstration of his clout. Many believe the development of a second bridge over the RiverSuir in Waterford, now at a tender stage, would not have advanced without him.
Cullen's career is on the up. But his colleagues may have words for him when the Cabinet reconvenes next month.