Susan O'Keeffe

She was educated at Mount Anville Secondary School, Dublin, and at University College Cork. She lives in Collooney, County Sligo with her husband and three children.

O'Keeffe is a journalist by profession. In 1995, when working on World in Action, she was threatened with prison in Ireland for refusing to reveal her sources. She had investigated scandals within the Irish meat industry in two films in 1991. The investigation centred on the Goodman International group – involving tax fraud, misappropriation of beef and Larry Goodman's dealings with Saddam Hussein's Iraq, leading to the setting-up of a Tribunal of Inquiry, known as the Beef Tribunal, which found that much of her criticism of the industry was substantiated. However, the Tribunal demanded that she name her informants, and when she refused to do so, she was charged by the Director of Public Prosecutions. The case became a cause célèbre in Ireland, and, in January 1995, she faced trial for contempt of court but was cleared of the charge.{{cite web|url=http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/S/0141/S.0141.199409010006.html|title=Seanad Éireann – Volume 141|publisher=Houses of the Oireachtas|date=1 September 1994|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120205022859/http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/S/0141/S.0141.199409010006.html|archive-date=5 February 2012}} She was honoured in the 1994 Freedom of Information Awards for her stand.{{cite web|url=http://www.cfoi.org.uk/awards94pr.html#okeeffe|title=1994 Freedom of Information Awards|publisher=The Campaign for Freedom of Information|date=27 February 1995|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130603081407/http://www.cfoi.org.uk/awards94pr.html#okeeffe|archive-date=3 June 2013}}{{cite news|url=http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/weekend/2011/0326/1224293121760.html|title=To impunity and beyond: brazenness of tribunal's shamed is well founded|newspaper=The Irish Times|date=26 March 2011|quote=The beef tribunal, which reported in 1994, made a series of astonishing findings against the Goodman International group ... The answer, of course, was no: the only person to be prosecuted as a result of the beef tribunal was Susan O'Keeffe, the journalist who uncovered the scandal in the first place ... Larry Goodman suffered no real damage|first=Fintan|last=O'Toole}}{{cite web|url=http://www.advertiser.ie/galway/article/10426|title=Susan O'Keeffe to find EU battle a tough tas|work=Galway Advertiser|date=2 April 2009}}

She was an unsuccessful candidate at the 2011 general election for the Sligo–North Leitrim constituency, polling 4,553 first preference votes (10.2%).{{cite web |url=http://www.electionsireland.org/candidate.cfm?ID=9273|title=Susan O'Keeffe|work=ElectionsIreland.org|access-date=27 April 2011}} She was also a candidate in the 2009 European Parliament election for the North-West constituency. Her candidacy in the 2011 general election was not helped by the fact that three former members of the Labour Party stood against her.{{cite web|url=http://electionsireland.org/result.cfm?election=2011&cons=730|title=2011 general election: Sligo–North Leitrim|work=ElectionsIreland.org|access-date=5 May 2012}} She was elected to the 24th Seanad in April 2011 by the Agricultural Panel.{{cite web|url=http://www.rte.ie/news/2011/0427/seanad.html|title=Counting continues in Seanad election|work=RTÉ News|date=27 April 2011}}

She was appointed whip of the Labour Senators in the Seanad. In May 2012, it was reported that she had the worst voting record amongst Labour Party Senators.{{cite news|url=http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/0505/1224315652636.html|title=Labour Senators see red over whip's poor voting record|newspaper=The Irish Times|date=5 May 2012}} A motion of no confidence in her was tabled by Senator John Whelan, although later withdrawn. It was reported in The Irish Times that "Ms O’Keeffe is considered by her critics to be too close to the leadership and inclined to play along with the official Labour Party line of accepting Fine Gael's proposal to abolish the Upper House."{{cite news|url=http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/0505/1224315652802.html|title=Labour leader says the party's whip in Seanad has his full support|newspaper=The Irish Times|date=5 May 2012}}

At the 2016 general election, she unsuccessfully contested the Sligo–Leitrim constituency. She was not re-elected to the Seanad.{{Cite web|url=https://www.electionsireland.org/result.cfm?election=2016&cons=204|title=ElectionsIreland.org: 32nd Dáil - Sligo Leitrim First Preference Votes|website=www.electionsireland.org}}

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{{Members of the 24th Seanad}}

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Category:1960 births

Category:Living people

Category:Alumni of University College Cork

Category:Irish women journalists

Category:Labour Party (Ireland) senators

Category:Members of the 24th Seanad

Category:21st-century women members of Seanad Éireann

Category:Politicians from County Sligo

Category:Writers from County Sligo

Category:People from Collooney

Category:Labour Party (Ireland) candidates in Dáil elections

Category:Agricultural Panel senators