Dr. T. K. Whitaker

Dr. T. K. Whitaker (1916 - 2017)

I was sad to learn of the death of Dr. T. K. Whitaker, just a month after celebrating his 100th birthday. Dr. Whitaker made a huge contribution to the economic, social and cultural well-being of this country.

Fianna Fáil's defeat in the 1954 General Election ushered in a second Inter-Party Government when Gerard Sweetman of Fine Gael became Minister of Finance. Sweetman — sadly killed in a car crash near Monasterevin in 1970 — produced a masterstroke on May 30th 1956 by appointing the 39 year-old Ken Whitaker as Secretary General of the Department of Finance, having read his pioneering paper on Economic Expansion.

Fianna Fáil opposed the ideals of economic expansion having pursued Éamon de Valera's reactionary economic policies throughout their domination of government since 1932. This resulted in mass emigration and unemployment which had risen to 421,000 by the time Fianna Fáil lost power in 1954. In Dáil Eireann, Fianna Fáil had voted against the major economic initiatives of Fine Gael-led colations, including the establishment of the Industrial Development Authority (IDA), Córas Tractála (Export Board) and the Agricultural Credit Corporation (ACC) while also opposing tax incentives for foreign manufacturers and the Land Reclamation Programme. However, when Fianna Fail returned to power in 1957, their Minister for Finance, Dr. Jim Ryan, worked with Ken Whitaker in producing the First Programme for Economic Expansion which was finally published in 1958. Crucially, this was also supported by Sean Lemass who became Taoiseach in 1959 following de Valera's retirement.

The First Programme for Economic Expansion paved the way for an upsurge in economic activity during the 1960's which cemented Fianna Fáil's hold on power until the early 1970's when faulty Government policies increased the National Debt to dangerous levels while also producing an adverse Balance of Payments and growing unemployment. This was the situation facing the coalition government of Fine Gael and Labour when they came to power in April 1973.

Ken Whitaker was a man of honour and integrity  — character traits which are gradually being eroded from Irish society. As the country emerges from a global economic crisis, a "low-standard" agenda of victimhood and entitlement is being successfully pushed by "anti-establishment" types facilitated by a sufficient number of the electorate who are being blinded by a false flag of modernity.