Seán Canney

{{Infobox officeholder

| honorific-suffix = TD

| image = Sean Canney, Dec 2024 - (54182976050 ) (cropped).jpg

| caption = Canney in 2024

| imagesize =

| office = Minister of State

| suboffice = Transport

| subterm = 2025–

| suboffice1 = Rural and Community Development

| subterm1 = 2018–2020

| suboffice2 = Communications, Climate Action and Environment

| subterm2 = 2018–2020

| suboffice3 = Public Expenditure and Reform

| subterm3 = 2016–2017

| office4 = Teachta Dála

| term_start4 = February 2016

| term_end4 =

| constituency4 = Galway East

| birth_date =

| birth_place = Belclare, County Galway, Ireland

| death_date =

| death_place =

| party = Independent

| otherparty = Independent Alliance
(2016–2018)

| spouse = {{marriage|Geraldine McHugh|1997}}

| children = 3

| alma_mater = Institute of Technology, Sligo

| website = {{URL|seancanney.com}}|

}}

Seán Canney is an Irish independent politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Galway East constituency since 2016.{{cite web|url=https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/members/member/Se%C3%A1n-Canney.D.2016-10-03/|title=Seán Canney|work=Oireachtas Members Database|access-date=5 May 2018|archive-date=27 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327172425/https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/members/member/Se%C3%A1n-Canney.D.2016-10-03/|url-status=live}} He has served as a Minister of State since January 2025, and previously from 2016 to 2017 and again from 2018 to 2020.

A native of Belclare, Tuam, County Galway. Canney was campaign manager for his brother-in-law, Paddy McHugh, in the 2002 general election, in which McHugh gained a seat in the Galway East constituency.{{cite web |last=Andrews|first=Kernan|date=24 February 2011|title=Fine Gael and Canney to be big winners in Galway East |url=https://www.advertiser.ie/Galway/article/36942/fine-gael-and-canney-to-be-big-winners-in-galway-east |access-date=13 January 2023 |website=Galway Advertiser}}

As an independent candidate, Canney was elected to Galway County Council in 2004, on his first attempt. He was re-elected in each of the subsequent local elections in 2009 and 2014. In both the 2009 and 2014 elections, he topped the poll in the Tuam local electoral area.{{cite web|title=Seán Canney|url=http://www.electionsireland.org/candidate.cfm?ID=5045|website=ElectionsIreland.org|access-date=13 July 2019|archive-date=21 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200921084844/https://www.electionsireland.org/candidate.cfm?ID=5045|url-status=live}}

He was an unsuccessful candidate in the 2011 general election in the Galway East constituency, receiving 5,567 first preference votes.

He served as Mayor of County Galway for the term 2007 to 2008, and served on a number of boards and committees. He joined the Independent Alliance in advance of the 2016 general election. At the 2016 general election, he topped the poll in Galway East, securing 8,447 first preference votes.{{cite news |title=Election 2016 - Galway East |work=The Irish Times |date=27 February 2016 |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/election-2016/galway-east |access-date=16 June 2016 |archive-date=16 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160616004043/http://www.irishtimes.com/election-2016/galway-east |url-status=live }} After lengthy government formation talks, the Independent Alliance supported the nomination of Enda Kenny as Taoiseach on 6 May 2016, allowing Kenny to become the first leader of Fine Gael to be re-appointed to this office.{{cite news|url=http://www.newstalk.com/election2016/Enda-Kenny-Taoiseach-Cabinet-Dail-votes-Independents|title=Enda Kenny is re-elected as Taoiseach in the Dáil|work=Newstalk|date=6 May 2016|access-date=7 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171121062500/http://www.newstalk.com/election2016/Enda-Kenny-Taoiseach-Cabinet-Dail-votes-Independents|archive-date=21 November 2017|url-status=dead}}

He was appointed a member of the Committee on Housing and Homelessness, a position he held until his appointment on 19 May 2016 by the new government as Minister of State at the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform with special responsibility for the Office of Public Works and Flood Relief.{{cite web|title=2016 Edition, No. 47|url=https://www.irisoifigiuil.ie/archive/2016/june/IR100616-1.pdf|page=805|date=10 June 2016|website=Iris Oifigiúil|access-date=22 June 2021|archive-date=14 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171114121818/http://irisoifigiuil.ie/archive/2016/june/IR100616-1.pdf|url-status=live}}{{cite news |title=Taoiseach appoints four Ministers of State to Department of Health |publisher=Newstalk HQ, Marconi House, Digges Lane, Dublin 2 |date=19 May 2016 |url=http://www.newstalk.com/Taoiseach-announces-15-new-Ministers-of-State |access-date=16 June 2016 |archive-date=23 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210923175220/https://www.newstalk.com/news/taoiseach-announces-15-new-ministers-of-state-596715 |url-status=live }} He served in that position until 3 June 2017, when he was succeeded by Kevin "Boxer" Moran, part of an arrangement within the Independent Alliance.{{cite web|title=2017 Edition, No. 46|url=https://www.irisoifigiuil.ie/archive/2017/june/Ir090617.pdf|page=789|date=9 June 2017|website=Iris Oifigiúil|access-date=22 June 2021|archive-date=2 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602213637/https://www.irisoifigiuil.ie/archive/2017/june/Ir090617.pdf|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://www.rte.ie/news/politics/2017/0603/880043-ireland-politics/|title=Moran takes up ministerial role in coin-flip deal|website=RTÉ.ie |date=3 June 2017|access-date=22 June 2021|archive-date=3 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210603110602/https://www.rte.ie/news/politics/2017/0603/880043-ireland-politics/|url-status=live}}

He has advocated the reopening the Western Rail Corridor to trains from Galway to Claremorris and Tuam railway station.{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/pressure-mounts-on-fg-to-invest-in-western-rail-corridor-34686753.html |title=Pressure mounts on FG to invest in Western Rail Corridor |first=Kevin |last=Doyle |newspaper=Irish Independent |date=5 May 2016 |access-date=2 December 2017 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20171202235816/https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/pressure-mounts-on-fg-to-invest-in-western-rail-corridor-34686753.html |archive-date=2 December 2017 |url-status=dead }}{{cite web |url=http://www.seancanney.com/western-rail-corridor-crucial-future-development-west-canney/ |title=Western Rail Corridor crucial for the future development of the West |website=seancanney.com |date=21 August 2017 |access-date=2 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171114080623/http://www.seancanney.com/western-rail-corridor-crucial-future-development-west-canney/ |archive-date=14 November 2017}}

He left the Independent Alliance in May 2018, but continued to support the government.{{cite news|url=https://www.rte.ie/news/politics/2018/0504/960249-sean-canney/|work=RTÉ News|title=Canney announces departure from Independent Alliance|date=4 May 2018|access-date=5 May 2018|archive-date=5 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180505205003/https://www.rte.ie/news/politics/2018/0504/960249-sean-canney/|url-status=live}}

In a reshuffle after the resignation of Denis Naughten from cabinet, Canney returned to the ministerial ranks on 16 October 2018. On 13 October 2018, he was appointed by the government on nomination by Leo Varadkar as Department of Rural and Community Development and at the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment with special responsibility for natural resources, community affairs and digital development.{{cite web|title=2018 Edition, No. 86|url=https://www.irisoifigiuil.ie/archive/2018/october/Ir261018.pdf|page=1476|date=26 October 2018|website=Iris Oifigiúil|access-date=22 June 2021|archive-date=24 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624210155/https://www.irisoifigiuil.ie/archive/2018/october/Ir261018.pdf|url-status=live}}{{cite Irish legislation|type=si|year=2018|number=511|name=Rural and Community Development (Delegation of Ministerial Functions) Order 2018|date=6 November 2018|access-date=30 December 2020}}{{cite Irish legislation|type=si|year=2018|number=472|name=Communications, Climate Action and Environment (Delegation of Ministerial Functions) Order 2018|date=13 November 2018|access-date=20 March 2021}}{{cite web|url=https://www.rte.ie/news/2018/1013/1002915-minister-appointments/|title=Bruton named Minister for Communications, McHugh named Minister for Education|date=13 October 2018|website=RTÉ News|first=Martina|last=Fitzgerald|access-date=13 October 2018|archive-date=13 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181013140720/https://www.rte.ie/news/2018/1013/1002915-minister-appointments/|url-status=live}}

Canney was re-elected at the February 2020 general election. He stayed in ministerial office until the formation of a new government on 27 June 2020. He sat in the Regional Group in the 33rd Dáil.

He was re-elected to the Dáil at the 2024 general election and was a member of the Regional Independent Group.{{cite web|url=https://www.rte.ie/news/election-24/2024/1205/1484730-govt-formation-analysis/|title=Independents move centre stage in Government formation talks|work=RTÉ News|date=9 December 2024|access-date=25 January 2025}} On 23 January 2025, he was appointed as a Minister of State at the Department of Transport with responsibility for International and road transport, logistics, rail and ports.{{cite news|url=https://www.rte.ie/news/politics/2025/0123/1492578-new-cabinet-in-full/|title=Cabinet list in full with number of promotions, changes|publisher=RTÉ News|first=Fiachra|last=Ó Cionnaith|date=23 January 2025|access-date=23 January 2025}} He is also a super junior minister, one of four Ministers of State in attendance at cabinet, but without a vote.