Seán Fleming

{{Infobox officeholder

| honorific-suffix = TD

| image = Seán Fleming, July 2024 (cropped).jpg

| caption = Fleming in 2024

| office = Minister of State

| suboffice = Foreign Affairs

| subterm = 2022–2025

| suboffice1 = Finance

| subterm1 = 2020–2022

| office2 = Chair of the Public Accounts Committee

| term_start2 = 4 April 2016

| term_end2 = 15 July 2020

| predecessor2 = John McGuinness

| successor2 = Brian Stanley

| office3 = Teachta Dála

| term_start3 = November 2024

| term_end3 =

| term_start4 = February 2016

| term_end4 = February 2020

| constituency4 = Laois

| term_start5 = February 2020

| term_end5 = November 2024

| term_start6 = June 1997

| term_end6 = February 2016

| constituency6 = Laois–Offaly

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1958|2|27|df=y}}

| birth_place = Portlaoise, County Laois, Ireland

| death_date =

| death_place =

| party = Fianna Fáil

| spouse = {{marriage|Mary Fleming|1992}}

| children = 1

| alma_mater = University College Dublin

| website =

|}}

Seán Fleming (born 27 February 1958) is an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who has served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Laois constituency since 2024, and previously from 2016 to 2020. He represented the Laois–Offaly constituency from 2020 to 2024, and previously from 1997 to 2016. He served as Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs from December 2022 to January 2025, and as Minister of State at the Department of Finance from July 2020 to December 2022. He served as Chair of the Public Accounts Committee from 2016 to 2020.{{cite web|url=https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/members/member/Se%C3%A1n-Fleming.D.1997-06-26/|title=Seán Fleming|work=Oireachtas Members Database|access-date=13 June 2009|archive-date=12 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190812151132/https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/members/member/Se%C3%A1n-Fleming.D.1997-06-26/|url-status=live}}

Fleming is an accountant by profession. He was educated at University College Dublin. Fleming was first elected to Dáil Éireann at the 1997 general election and retained his seat at the 2002, 2007, 2011, 2016 and 2020 general elections.{{cite web|url=http://www.electionsireland.org/candidate.cfm?ID=4339|title=Seán Fleming|work=ElectionsIreland.org|access-date=13 June 2009|archive-date=22 December 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171222072337/https://electionsireland.org/candidate.cfm?ID=4339|url-status=live}} He was formerly Financial Director of Fianna Fáil at national level.{{citation needed|date=December 2020}}

He was elected at the 1999 local elections as a member of Laois County Council for the Borris-in-Ossory local electoral area.

He served as Opposition Spokesperson for Public Expenditure and Reform from 2011 to 2016. He was previously the Chair of the Public Accounts Committee from 2016 to 2020.

On 15 July 2020, he was appointed as Minister of State at the Department of Finance, with special responsibility for Financial Services, Credit Unions and Insurance.{{cite web|url=https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/debates/debate/dail/2020-07-15/22/|title=Nomination of Member of Government: Motion – Dáil Éireann (33rd Dáil) – Wednesday, 14 July 2020|access-date=15 July 2020|website=Houses of the Oireachtas|date=15 July 2020|archive-date=9 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201209032959/https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/debates/debate/dail/2020-07-15/22/|url-status=live}}{{cite Irish legislation|type=si|year=2020|number=646|name=Finance (Delegation of Ministerial Functions) Order 2020 |date=8 December 2020|access-date=4 January 2021}}

Fleming received criticism from opposition parties in February 2022 when, amid a 20 year high in inflation, he suggested that people should stop complaining about their finances, stating "[r]ather than just complaining and [asking] 'What's the Government going to do for me?', you can actually have a serious impact on your own finance, but it involves people having to do some work themselves."{{cite news |url=https://www.rte.ie/news/ireland/2022/0207/1278333-cost-of-living/ |title=Govt leaders meeting to discuss cost of living measures |website=RTE News |date=7 February 2022 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207210339/https://www.rte.ie/news/ireland/2022/0207/1278333-cost-of-living/ |archive-date=7 February 2022}}{{cite news |url=https://www.rte.ie/news/business/2022/0119/1274597-cso-inflation-figures/ |title=Annual rate of inflation hits 20-year high, reaching 5.5% in December |website=RTE News |date=19 January 2022 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220207210154/https://www.rte.ie/news/business/2022/0119/1274597-cso-inflation-figures/ |archive-date=7 February 2022}} He later apologised for his comments.{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/politics/junior-minister-sean-fleming-apologises-for-out-of-touch-comments-about-cost-of-living-41323390.html |title=Junior minister Seán Fleming apologises for 'out of touch' comments about cost of living |website=Irish Independent |date=8 February 2022 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220208183549/https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/politics/junior-minister-sean-fleming-apologises-for-out-of-touch-comments-about-cost-of-living-41323390.html |archive-date=8 February 2022}}

In December 2022, he was appointed as Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs with special responsibility for International Development and Diaspora following the appointment of Leo Varadkar as Taoiseach.{{cite web|url=https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/dd77e-minister-of-state-appointments/|title=Minister of State appointments|publisher=Department of the Taoiseach|website=gov.ie|date=21 December 2022|access-date=21 December 2022}} He was not re-appointed as a minister of state in 2025.