54 Facts About Helen McEntee

Helen McEntee was born on 8 June 1986 and is an Irish Fine Gael politician who has served as Minister for Education and Youth since January 2025 and deputy leader of Fine Gael since October 2024.

Helen McEntee has been a Teachta Dala for the Meath East constituency since 2013.

Helen McEntee previously served as Minister for Justice from 2020 to 2025 and a minister of state from 2016 to 2020.

Helen McEntee began working at Leinster House in 2010 as a personal assistant to her father.

Helen McEntee had her first child in April 2021, becoming the first cabinet member in the country's history to give birth or take maternity leave while in office.

The daughter of Shane and Kathleen McEntee, Helen McEntee is one of four siblings; she has two sisters and a brother.

Helen McEntee is the niece of former Gaelic footballer and prominent surgeon Gerry McEntee and of Gaelic football manager Andy McEntee.

Helen McEntee's father was first elected to Dail Eireann as a Fine Gael TD at the 2005 Meath by-election, winning the seat vacated by the resignation of former Taoiseach John Bruton, and was a popular figure with constituents.

Helen McEntee began to work in Leinster House as her father's personal assistant in May 2010, while he was an opposition TD.

Helen McEntee considered standing as a candidate in the 2014 local elections, and discussed the prospect with her father, as well as the possibility of one day succeeding him as a member of the Dail.

Helen McEntee moved with him to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine when he was appointed Minister of State after Fine Gael became a party of government following the 2011 general election.

Shane Helen McEntee died by suicide on 21 December 2012, his death triggering a by-election.

Fine Gael politician John Farrelly suggested online abuse as a possible cause, but Helen McEntee has rejected this theory since she had managed her father's social media presence and was not aware of any issues.

Helen McEntee was selected to stand as the Fine Gael candidate in the Meath East by-election during a party convention held at the Headfort Arms Hotel in Kells on 7 March 2013.

Helen McEntee was the only nominee whose name went forward to contest the seat and the only woman among eleven candidates in the by-election itself.

Helen McEntee was joined on the campaign trail by Taoiseach Enda Kenny, who was confronted at a supermarket in Ratoath by an officer of the Garda Siochana angered at having to accept a pay cut because of austerity measures introduced by the government.

Helen McEntee was elected to Dail Eireann in the by-election held on 27 March 2013, defeating Byrne with 9,356 first preference votes compared to 8,002 for Byrne.

At age 26, Helen McEntee became the second youngest TD and the youngest female TD in the 31st Dail.

Helen McEntee took her seat in the Dail on 16 April 2013, where she received a standing ovation upon entering the debating chamber, and was welcomed by Taoiseach Kenny, as well as other political leaders.

Helen McEntee described taking up the seat vacated by her father as "a huge honour", and said that it was an "emotional day for all the McEntee family".

Helen McEntee was appointed to the Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications, and the Oireachtas Committee on Environment, Culture and the Gaeltacht.

Helen McEntee secured funding for the Slane bypass, as well as increased funding for schools and local community sports projects.

Helen McEntee campaigned for a yes vote in the 2015 referendum concerning the legalisation of same-sex marriage in the Republic of Ireland, and voted in favour of the proposed abolition of Seanad Eireann, the upper house of the Irish parliament.

Helen McEntee contested the Meath East constituency in the 2016 general election, where she was one of two sitting Fine Gael deputies defending Dail seats.

Elaine Loughlin of the Irish Examiner noted that despite her relatively short time representing the constituency, Helen McEntee had been "visible on the ground, attending community meetings and events", and suggested she would benefit from this at the forthcoming poll, particularly as she had enjoyed a greater presence than her colleagues.

Newstalk radio presenter Ivan Yates forecast a win for Fianna Fail in an area that falls into the Dublin commuter belt but felt that Helen McEntee would hold on to her seat because she is from the largely rural north of the constituency.

Helen McEntee described the proposal as "an historic offer, representing seismic change in the political landscape".

Helen McEntee participated in an internal party inquiry into Fine Gael's poor election performance, as part of a team of TDs who spoke to unsuccessful candidates, but stood down from this position upon her appointment as a junior minister.

Helen McEntee worked with the charity's chief executive to ensure the services it provided would continue to be available.

Helen McEntee announced the establishment of a Young Persons' Reference Group, co-chaired by singer Niall Breslin and mental health adviser Emma Farrell.

In January 2019, Helen McEntee told the BBC the Irish backstop was necessary, because of the UK's red lines on leaving the European single market and European customs union, to avoid a hard Border and protect the Northern Ireland peace process.

Helen McEntee called on the UK to live up to its obligations of the Good Friday Agreement.

Helen McEntee was elected as vice president of the European People's Party in November 2019, at the party's Congress in Zagreb.

In December 2020, Helen McEntee announced the government's plans to introduce new hate speech legislation in Ireland.

Helen McEntee sponsored the subsequent Criminal Justice Bill 2022, which passed Dail Eireann in April 2023, but was later stalled in the Seanad amid concerns about its potential impact on privacy and freedom of speech.

Helen McEntee said that people had "valid concerns" about the legislation that she would address.

On 27 April 2021, the Department of Justice was reassigned temporarily to Heather Humphreys as Helen McEntee began six months' maternity leave.

Helen McEntee remained in the Cabinet as a minister without portfolio.

Helen McEntee was reassigned to the Department of Justice on 1 November 2021.

Helen McEntee faced criticism over public safety the following month, after teenage boys in Dublin city centre attacked a 57-year-old tourist from Buffalo, New York, inflicting life-changing injuries.

Opposition parties called on Helen McEntee to resign following the November 2023 Dublin riot.

Helen McEntee faced criticism over her handling of issues relating to asylum seekers, with some commentators suggesting that she was unprepared to handle the issue.

On 19 October 2024, and following the announcement by Heather Humphreys, the deputy leader of Fine Gael, that she would not contest the next general election, Helen McEntee was appointed to replace her as deputy leader by Simon Harris.

Helen McEntee has sought to raise awareness of suicide-related issues since her father's death, and in 2013 joined the launch of a suicide prevention campaign by the Pieta House charity, aimed at educating rural communities about the early warning signs of suicide.

Helen McEntee took part in a sponsored walk from Dublin to Navan for the See the Light campaign, which seeks to raise awareness of mental health issues.

Helen McEntee believes the government should address concerns about the mental health of unemployed young people.

Helen McEntee believes more women should be encouraged to go into politics, and as a minister has spoken of her support for the idea of gender quotas as a way of increasing the number of female politicians.

Helen McEntee supported and campaigned for the introduction of same-sex marriage in Ireland in 2015, calling the referendum "an opportunity to show the world that we treat all our citizens as equals".

Helen McEntee supported the repeal of the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution, which legalised abortion in Ireland.

Helen McEntee is married to Paul Hickey, who she first met while he was working at Dail Eireann as a parliamentary assistant to fellow Fine Gael politician Joe McHugh.

On 5 December 2020, Helen McEntee announced that she and her husband were expecting their first child.

Helen McEntee gave birth to a boy in April 2021, making her the first Irish cabinet minister to give birth while in office.

On 20 June 2022, Helen McEntee announced that she and her husband were expecting their second child.

Helen McEntee gave birth to a boy in December 2022.