The Leader of Fine Gael is the most senior politician within the Fine Gael political party in Ireland. The party leader is Simon Harris, who took up the role on 24 March 2024 after the resignation of Leo Varadkar.
The deputy leader of Fine Gael is Helen McEntee, whom Harris appointed on 19 October 2024 after her predecessor, Heather Humphreys, declared she would not contest the 2024 general election.
Simon Harris (born 17 October 1986) is an Irish Fine Gael politician serving as Tánaiste and Minister for Finance since 2025, having previously served as Taoiseach from 2024 to 2025, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade and Minister for Defence from January to November 2025. He has been leader of Fine Gael since 2024 and a TD for the Wicklow constituency since 2011. A Cabinet minister since 2016, he previously served as a minister of state from 2014 to 2016.
Born in Greystones, Harris became politically active as a teenager, campaigning on behalf of children with autism and attention deficit disorder. He was elected to Wicklow County Council in the 2009 local elections. He was elected to Dáil Éireann at the 2011 general election, becoming the "baby of the Dáil" at age 24, and was appointed Minister of State at the Department of Finance in 2014. Following the formation of a Fine Gael minority government in 2016, he was appointed Minister for Health. On the formation of the coalition government in 2020, he was appointed Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science. From December 2022 to June 2023, he also served as Minister for Justice during the maternity leave of Cabinet colleague Helen McEntee.
The Minister for Defence (Irish: An tAire Cosanta) is a senior minister in the Government of Ireland and leads the Department of Defence. The current Minister for Defence is Helen McEntee, TD. She is also Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade.
The department is responsible for the Irish Defence Forces. The Ministers and Secretaries Acts 1924 assigned the minister the additional title of Commander-in-Chief as the Chairman of the Council of Defence. The Defence Act 1954 removed this title, as a result of the reconstitution of the Council of Defence. The President of Ireland, a largely ceremonial role, is considered the Supreme Commander of the Defence Forces. In practice, the Minister acts on the President's behalf and reports to the Irish Government. The Minister for Defence is advised by the Council of Defence on the business of the Department of Defence.