Irish political hierarchy demonstrates relationship of Irish political bodies with the government in a properly arranged manner. Ireland’s political system is basically a parliamentary system incorporating a representative democratic republic. Irish political hierarchy is a member state of the European Union.
The highest rank in the political Irish hierarchy is the President of the Ireland. President of Ireland is the highest available ceremonial rank with real political power and authorities being vested in the indirectly elected Prime Minister that is the head of the Irish government.
The Irish political hierarchy is described below in this article in the ladder format of starting with the highest rank of the hierarchy and then proceeding forward in a descending mode.
- President
- Executive branch
- Legislative Branch
- Judicial Branch
- Public Sector
- Local Government
President
The highest available position in the Irish political hierarchy is the President. The President exercises the main central ceremonial role in keeping a good relation with the state’s parliamentary system of the government and also possesses some specific powers and authorities. The presidency is open for all Irish citizens above age group of 30 years.
Executive branch
The executive branch is the next rank in this hierarchy and all the executive powers are exercised by the government that incorporates maximum 15 cabinet ministers. This branch includes the Prime Minister referred as Taoiseach in Ireland as well as the Deputy Prime Minister referred to as the Tánaiste. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President.
Legislative Branch
The next branch in the Irish political hierarchy is the legislative branch and all the legislative powers are vested in the Oireachtas which is the bicameral national parliament of Ireland. This branch incorporates the Dáil Éireann and Seanad Éireann.
Judicial Branch
This level of the Irish political hierarchy is totally independent of the executive and the legislative branches and work independently. The head of this branch is the Chief Justice. The honorable Chief Justice presides over the Supreme Court, the highest justice court of the Ireland.
Public Sector
The government along with the civil services and the public services are often referred to as the public sector. The commercial activities undertaken by the state government, through their state-sponsored bodies which are typically organized in the similar manner as the private organizations are organized. This category can be further sub categorized as below –
- Civil Services – This branch incorporates two broad components – the Civil Service of the government and the Civil Service of the State. The civil service is required to be politically impartial.
- Public Services – The public service proper consists of Government agencies and bodies which provide services on behalf of the Government but are not the core civil service.
Local Government
Local government in Ireland is governed by a series of Local Government Acts, beginning with the Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898.