Taoiseach leads tributes as former MEP Mary Banotti dies

Taoiseach Simon Harris has paid tribute to former MEP Mary Banotti, who has died at 84-years-old.

Ms Banotti was first elected in 1984 and served as an MEP for the Dublin constituency for 20 years as well as being the candidate for Fine Gael in the 1997 presidential election.

In a statement, the Taoiseach paid tribute to Ms Banotti on X (formerly Twitter) saying: "It is with great sadness that I have learned of the passing of Ms Banotti. Mary was a talented politician, a trailblazer and a joy to be around. She was smart, wise and funny.

It is with great sadness that I learned of the passing of Mary Banotti.
Mary was a talented politician, a trailblazer and a joy to be around. She was smart, wise and funny. She had impact, vision and determination.

My statement below.

My deepest sympathy to her family pic.twitter.com/NIiaeSPQdC

— Simon Harris TD (@SimonHarrisTD) May 11, 2024

"Mary was a former TV presenter and a co-founder of Women's Aid, which opened Ireland’s first women’s refuge. She also served as chairperson of the Rutland Centre for Drug Abuse and her work in healthcare and women's rights was evident throughout her committed and assiduous career in the European Parliament. She also focused in on and put environmental issues on the European agenda long before it was the widespread thing to do and was named one of the top 10 environmental legislators in Europe. Another area she broke new ground was in her work supporting parentally abducted children in the EU, the first person to hold the official role.

"Mary did so much with her life and had so much to be proud of, but she was humble. Her energy was boundless and she always had a nugget of wise political insight or a witty observation."

Ms Banotti began her political career after working as a nurse in London, the US, Canada and Kenya and is survived by her daughter Tania Banotti.