Thomas Gould’s biography on the Sinn Féin website makes much of the fact that he was the first person to be elected a TD from the working class suburb of Knocknaheeny in Cork’s north city area. Knocknaheeny also contains Apple’s Europe headquarters, employing about 5,000 people.
Gould, the party’s spokesman on addiction and recovery, now lives in Gurranabraher with his wife Michelle and their two daughters. He is 57 years old.
[ Thomas Gould arrest: Mary Lou McDonald ‘happy to address issues’ before Dáil Opens in new window ]
Gould holds memberships of St Vincent’s Hurling and Football Club and the Northside Schools Coaching Initiative.
He worked as a logistics manager with a Cork-based company before it was sold, claiming he was asked by the previous owners to help the company with the transition to new ownership.
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“The complaint made against me relates to my employment as a logistics manager before I was elected to the Dáil in 2020. I worked for this company for 16 years,” he said on Sunday.
[ Sinn Féin’s Thomas Gould confirms he is TD at centre of fraud investigationOpens in new window ]
Mr Gould rejected a complaint that he said his former employer had made against him.
He served on Cork City Council for 11 years, originally for the Cork City North Central area in 2009 and subsequently for the Cork City North West local electoral area from 2019 until 2020.
His areas of interest are in tackling poverty and strategies and support for recovering addicts.
Since his election to the Dáil he has contributed to the Oireachtas Housing Committee, commenting on housing and community development issues. While on the council he criticised the city’s spending on the visit of the then Prince Charles.
In 2021 he defended former Sinn Féin politician Martin Ferris’ support for the Provisional IRA, saying the outlawed organisation was made up of volunteers “who stepped up in their community”.
