Gobnait and Aoibhinn are 'throwbacks to an Ireland of old'

Our new navy ships should have names that celebrate modern female changemakers, says Simon Tierney 

Tánaiste and Minister for Defence, Micheál Martin welcomed the delivery of two Inshore Patrol Vessels (IPVs) to the Naval Service at Haulbowline Naval Base - the Gobnait and the Aoibhinn

Recently, the Tánaiste, under his powers as Minister for Defence, announced the names of our two new Irish Navy vessels. 

With the recent move towards a more modern naming convention over the past decade, and a promise from his predecessor in Defence to name one of them after an Irish woman, I was intrigued to see what he would come up with.