Professor James Dooge

PROFESSOR James Dooge, who was minister for foreign affairs from 1981 to 1982 and a member of the Seanad for almost 30 years, died on Friday aged 88.

He was the last senator to be appointed to the cabinet when then taoiseach Garret FitzGerald appointed him to the foreign affairs portfolio, where he served for the 18 months that the Fine Gael-Labour coalition lasted. Dooge had a distinguished career as an academic. He enjoyed a global reputation for his work in the study of hydrology. Among his political achievements was his role in the development of Ireland's role in the European Union.

Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny said, "I always held him in the highest regard, both for his personal qualities and for his academic and political talents."