‘PROFILE IN COURAGE’Lenihan loses battle with cancer at 52

IT was, Brian Lenihan agreed with a friend, the pinnacle of his political career: becoming the first Fianna Fáil figure to address the annual Michael Collins commemoration at Béal na mBláth.

In that speech last August, Mr Lenihan acknowledged the severity of the economic crisis and its human cost, but placed his faith in the “essential resilience” of the Irish people to pull through.

Sadly, despite demonstrating precisely that resilience in his battle with cancer, Mr Lenihan lost his 18-month fight yesterday, dying in the early hours of the morning at the age of 52.

The former finance minister passed away at his home in Strawberry Beds, Dublin, where he was receiving palliative care.

While it had been known in political circles in recent weeks that Mr Lenihan’s condition was deteriorating, his death still prompted a sense of shock around Leinster House and across the country.

Tributes poured in, but it was perhaps the words of his aunt, former Fianna Fáil minister Mary O’Rourke, which most poignantly captured the grief at his passing. “It’s all over. It’s kind of unbelievable,” Ms O’Rourke said.

“He always worked for his country and he worked for the best of Ireland and I suppose in the end what anybody in public life would wish to do, and that’s what he did,” she said on RTÉ Radio. “I just feel my life has almost ended, I really do.”

President Mary McAleese said Mr Lenihan, as finance minister, faced challenges whose scale and gravity were unprecedented in the history of the state: “Despite his illness, he faced up to those challenges with extraordinary but characteristic dignity, courage and good humour... Brian lived a life of outstanding personal integrity and dedicated public service.”

Taoiseach Enda Kenny echoed those comments, saying Mr Lenihan had fought his illness with “serenity” while courageously continuing to perform his ministerial duties.

Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin said Mr Lenihan’s unflinching devotion to duty “defines modern patriotism”.

Speaking of Mr Lenihan’s tenure as finance minister, he said: “He was tested — and tested hard — but he played a stellar role in meeting the fiscal crisis head-on. When Ireland was in the eye of the storm, Brian Lenihan never faltered… His unyielding determination to do his duty — in spite of a serious illness — was remarkable and inspirational. It was truly a profile in courage.”

Former taoisigh Brian Cowen and Bertie Ahern also paid tribute, as did EU Economics and Monetary Commissioner Olli Rehn, who worked closely with Mr Lenihan during the bailout period.

The Department of Finance staff also released a statement expressing both their sadness and their sympathies with Mr Lenihan’s family.

Mr Lenihan is survived by his wife, Circuit Court judge Patricia Ryan, their son Tom and daughter Claire.

He is also survived by his mother Ann, his brothers Conor, Niall and Paul, his sister Anita, his aunt Ms O’Rourke, and extended family.