Who We Are

Neale Richmond

Neale Richmond

Minister of State for Business, Employment and Retail

Neale Richmond TD was appointed as Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment with special responsibility for Employment Affairs and Retail Business, and the Department of Social Protection, on 13 January 2023.

Much of his work at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment is with businesses, workers, their representative bodies and the state agencies to ensure that the economic recovery and growth extends to all parts of the country. He works closely with the SME sector, including retail, on building resilience and on the transition to the green and digital economies.

Minister Richmond has responsibility in government at international level for EPSCO - the Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council, EMCO - Employment Committee, and the ILO - International Labour Organisation.

Prior to his role as Minister of State, he was elected as a TD for Dublin Rathdown in the 2020 General Election. In April 2016 he was elected to Seanad Éireann, on the Labour Panel, where he was the Fine Gael Spokesperson on European Affairs and chair of the Seanad Special Select Committee on the withdrawal of the UK from the EU.

Neale served for seven years on Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council where he was first elected in 2009, and then re-elected in 2014.

Neale served for two years as a member of the EU’s Committee of the Regions, leading the Irish delegation, acting as Rapporteur on the Opinion on a more responsible trade and investment policy.

Neale holds a BA in History and an MA in politics from UCD. He lives in Stepaside with his wife and their two children.