Dr Emily O’Reilly

UCD Alumni Award in Arts and Humanities 2025

BA 1979, Honorary Doctorate of Laws 2014

Emily O’Reilly was the Ombudsman and Information Commissioner for Ireland from 2003 to 2013. Her outstanding success in this role was reflected in her election to the post of European Ombudsman by the European Parliament in 2013, and she completed her third and final term in office in early 2025. She has made an extraordinary impact as a defender of human rights and a fearless advocate for transparency and accountability in public bodies and government agencies. She has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to protecting the rights of individuals, increasing public access to information, and upholding the values of the EU. Emily began her career as a political journalist and has won multiple awards for both her journalism and advocacy work. She has held senior positions with The Irish Press and The Sunday Tribune as well as serving as a political columnist at The Sunday Times and as the Political Editor of the Sunday Business Post. She was awarded a prestigious Nieman Fellowship in Journalism from Harvard University in 1987. She is the author of three books: Candidate: The Truth Behind the Presidential Campaign (1991), Masterminds of the Right (1992), and Veronica Guerin (1998).