Cathal Berry

Cathal Berry ([ˈkahəɫ̪]) is an Irish Independent politician and former Irish Army officer who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Kildare South constituency since the 2020 general election.

Berry was a career Line Infantry officer and served for six years as the second-in-command (2IC) of the Army Ranger Wing, Ireland's special operations force, before qualifying as a medical doctor and becoming the head of the Military Medical School of the Irish Defence Forces.

Berry came to public attention in 2019, unusual for a soldier, particularly with service in the ARW, when upon retiring after 23 years in the Defence Forces, he spoke to the media about poor pay and conditions within the military and the disillusionment of military personnel with the perceived dysfunctional relationship between the military authorities and the Department of Defence.

Berry called for the resignation of Paul Kehoe, the Minister of State at the Department of Defence (Junior Defence Minister), whom he described as an "empty suit" who has "presided over the demise of the Defence Force" since he took up the role in 2011.

Berry successfully ran for election to Dáil Éireann as an Independent candidate in the Kildare South constituency at the 2020 general election with his platform being "health, housing, the environment, education and Defence Force families".