Editing Progressive Democrats (section)

{{short description|Irish political party (1985–2009)}}
{{Distinguish|Congressional Progressive Caucus|National Progressive Democrats|Progressive Democratic Party (disambiguation)}}
{{Use Hiberno-English|date=June 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}
{{Infobox political party
| country          = the Republic of Ireland
| name             = Progressive Democrats
| native_name      = An Páirtí Daonlathach
| logo             = Logo of the Progressive Democrats (Ireland), circa 2000s.png
| leader           = {{ublist
 | [[Desmond O'Malley]] (first)
 | [[Noel Grealish]] (last)
}}
| founder          = Desmond O'Malley
| foundation       = {{start date|1985|12|21|df=y}}
| dissolution      = {{end date|2009|11|20|df=yes}}
| headquarters     = 25 South Frederick Street, [[Dublin]] 2
| ideology         = [[Conservative liberalism]] <br> [[Economic liberalism]]
| position         = [[Centre-right politics|Centre-right]]{{refn|<ref name="Weishaupt">{{cite book|author=J. Timo Weishaupt|title=From the Manpower Revolution to the Activation Paradigm: Explaining Institutional Continuity and Change in an Integrating Europe|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1ePDKhmzsEIC&pg=PT138|year=2011|publisher=Amsterdam University Press|isbn=978-90-8964-252-3|page=138|access-date=5 October 2016|archive-date=18 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170818212055/https://books.google.com/books?id=1ePDKhmzsEIC&pg=PT138|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Gilland">{{cite book|author=Karin Gilland|chapter=Ireland: neutrality and the International use of force|editor1=Philip Everts|editor2=Pierangelo Isernia|title=Public Opinion and the International Use of Force|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OGLj7oJU5MIC&pg=PA138|year=2013|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-134-60217-9|page=138|access-date=5 October 2016|archive-date=27 June 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140627175835/http://books.google.com/books?id=OGLj7oJU5MIC&pg=PA138|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="PuddingtonPiano">{{cite book|editor1=Arch Puddington|editor2=Aili Piano|editor3=Katrina Neubauer|title=Freedom in the World 2009: The Annual Survey of Political Rights & Civil Liberties|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hZVhuV7h5hwC&pg=PA356|date=30 September 2009|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|isbn=978-1-4422-0122-4|page=356|access-date=5 October 2016|archive-date=1 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180801092709/https://books.google.com/books?id=hZVhuV7h5hwC&pg=PA356|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="LeonardBotetzagias">{{cite book|author1=Liam Leonard|author2=Iosif Botetzagias|title=Sustainable Politics and the Crisis of the Peripheries: Ireland and Greece|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iIMvrVg1v20C&pg=PA38|year=2011|publisher=Emerald Group Publishing|isbn=978-0-85724-761-2|page=38|access-date=5 October 2016|archive-date=9 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180809070547/https://books.google.com/books?id=iIMvrVg1v20C&pg=PA38|url-status=live}}</ref>}}
| youth_wing       = [[Young Progressive Democrats]]
| international    = [[Liberal International]]
| european         = [[Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party|European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party]]
| europarl         = [[European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party Group|LDR]] (1989–1994)
| colours          = [[Green]], [[Dark blue (color)|dark blue]]
| colorcode        = {{party color|Progressive Democrats}}
| website          = [https://web.archive.org/web/20030609174002/http://www.progressivedemocrats.ie/ http://www.progressivedemocrats.ie/]
}}
The '''Progressive Democrats''' ({{langx|ga|An Páirtí Daonlathach}}, literally "The Democratic Party"), commonly referred to as the '''PDs''', were a [[Conservative liberalism|conservative liberal]]<ref name="HamannKelly2010">{{cite book|author1=Kerstin Hamann|author2=John Kelly|title=Parties, Elections, and Policy Reforms in Western Europe: Voting for Social Pacts|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5hXGBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA1982|year=2010|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-136-94986-9|page=1982|access-date=5 October 2016|archive-date=29 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200729154029/https://books.google.com/books?id=5hXGBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA1982|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Slomp2011">{{cite book|author=Hans Slomp|title=Europe, a Political Profile: An American Companion to European Politics|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V1uzkNq8xfIC&pg=PA333|year=2011|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-0-313-39181-1|page=333|access-date=5 October 2016|archive-date=26 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181226015849/https://books.google.com/books?id=V1uzkNq8xfIC&pg=PA333|url-status=live}}</ref> [[List of political parties in the Republic of Ireland|political party in Ireland]]. The party's history spanned 24 years, from its formation in 1985 to its dissolution in 2009.

Launched on 21 December 1985 by [[Desmond O'Malley]] and other politicians who had split from [[Fianna Fáil]] and [[Fine Gael]], the Progressive Democrats took liberal positions on [[divorce]], [[Birth control|contraception]] and other social issues. The party also supported [[Economic liberalization|economic liberalisation]], advocating measures such as lower [[tax]]ation, [[fiscal conservatism]], [[Privatization|privatisation]] and [[welfare reform]]. The party performed strongly at its first election, the [[1987 Irish general election|1987 general election]], winning 14 seats in [[Dáil Éireann]] and capturing almost 12 per cent of the popular vote to temporarily surpass the [[Labour Party (Ireland)|Labour Party]] as Ireland's third-largest political party.

Although the Progressive Democrats never again won more than 10 seats in the Dáil, it formed [[coalition government]]s with [[Fianna Fáil]] during the [[26th Dáil]] (1989–1992), the [[28th Dáil]] (1997–2002), the [[29th Dáil]] (2002–2007) and the [[30th Dail]] (2007–2009). These successive years as the government's junior coalition partner gave the party an influence on Irish politics and [[economics]] disproportionate to its small size. The party was credited with shaping the low-tax, pro-business environment that contributed to Ireland's [[Celtic Tiger]] economic boom during the 1990s and 2000s;<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.independent.ie/national-news/shaping-the-politics-that-spawned-the-celtic-tiger-77283.html|title=Shaping the politics that spawned the Celtic Tiger|work=[[Irish Independent]]|date=8 September 2006|access-date=29 October 2008|archive-date=20 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110520082221/http://www.independent.ie/national-news/shaping-the-politics-that-spawned-the-celtic-tiger-77283.html|url-status=live}}</ref> however, it was also blamed for contributing to the post-2008 [[Post-2008 Irish economic downturn|Irish financial and economic crisis]].<ref name="independent">{{cite news | url=http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/ffpd-policy-to-blame-for-economic-ills-claims-report-2554051.html | work=Irish Independent | first=Siobhan | last=Creaton | title=FF-PD policy to blame for economic ills, claims report | date=24 February 2011 | access-date=24 February 2011 | archive-date=18 February 2013 | archive-url=https://archive.today/20130218004009/http://www.independent.ie/business/irish/ffpd-policy-to-blame-for-economic-ills-claims-report-2554051.html | url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Mary Harney]] became party leader in 1993, the first woman to lead any major Irish political party. She stepped down in 2006 and was succeeded by [[Michael McDowell (politician)|Michael McDowell]], who led the party into the [[2007 Irish general election|2007 general election]], where it lost six of its eight seats in the Dáil. The party never recovered from this electoral collapse. On 8 November 2008, delegates to a special conference in Mullingar voted to disband the party, which was formally dissolved on 20 November 2009.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2009/0228/1224241989891.html|title=Formal winding-up of PDs delayed for legal reasons|newspaper=[[The Irish Times]]|date=28 February 2009|access-date=28 February 2009|archive-date=8 November 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111108221601/http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2009/0228/1224241989891.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.irisoifigiuil.ie/archive/2009/november/Ir201109.PDF|title=Electoral Acts 1992 and 2001 – Register of Political Parties|work=[[Iris Oifigiúil]]|date=20 November 2009|access-date=12 January 2010|archive-date=24 February 2011|archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/10702/20110224034002/http://www.irisoifigiuil.ie/archive/2009/november/Ir201109.PDF|url-status=live}}</ref> The two Progressive Democrats elected to the 30th Dáil, Harney and [[Noel Grealish]], continued to support the government as independent TDs. Harney continued to serve as [[Minister for Health (Ireland)|Minister for Health and Children]] until January 2011.