Liam Aylward

Liam Aylward (born September, 1952) is an Irish Fianna Fáil politician and a Member of the European Parliament for Ireland East. He is a Teachta Dála for Carlow-Kilkenny and a MEP for Ireland East.

Liam Aylward was born in Mullinavat, County Kilkenny in 1952. He was educated at St Kierans College, Kilkenny. He worked as a laboratory technician before getting involved in politics. He was elected to Kilkenny County Council in 1974, serving on that authority until 1992. Aylward was first elected to Dáil Éireann at the 1977 general election for Carlow-Kilkenny in what proved to be a landslide for Fianna Fáil. Since then he has served as Minister of State at the Department of Energy (1988-1989), at the Department of Education (1992-1994) and at the Department of Agriculture & Food (2002-2004). In 2004 he was elected to the European Parliament for Fianna Fáil, which is a part of the Union for a Europe of Nations.

Because legislation forbids Members of the European Parliament from seeking re-election as members of their national legislatures, Liam Aylward has indicated that he will be retiring at the next general election. He has been succeeded as a Fianna Fáil candidate by his brother, Bobby.