ABSTRACT
Interest groups are a central part of the policy-making process. The study of interest group politics involves assessing the ‘organisation, aggregation, articulation and intermediation of societal interests that seek to shape public policies’ (Beyers et al., 2008: 1103). While the importance of interest groups in Ireland has varied over time, this chapter seeks to examine the role they play in the policy-making process, explain their influence, and assess whether their impact has been positive or negative. Interest group activity in Ireland spans numerous strands and is associated in the public mind on one level with social partnership, where sectional groups such as trade unions, employers and farmers’ interests have played a central role since 1987, and on another level with various cause-centred groups that have attempted to influence policy outcomes in a specific area.
