David Byrne

David Byrne began his career as a barrister in Ireland in 1970, became Attorney General of
Ireland in 1997, and was appointed the first European Commissioner for Health and Consumer
Protection from 1999 to 2004.

Since retiring from membership of the EU Commission, Mr. Byrne acted as Special Envoy to the
Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) on a project to amend the
International Health Regulations dealing with the monitoring, surveillance and response to global
communicable diseases such as SARS and Avian influenza. These regulations were adopted by
the World Health Assembly in May 2005 and are the second of the two global health treaties
sponsored by the WHO.

He has also agreed to take up various advisory roles in health, including;

• Chair of the Ethics Review Committee of the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) WHO, Lyons.
• Patron of Health First Europe (HFE), Brussels.
• Chair Cardiovascular Research Institute, Trinity College, Dublin
• Member Advisory Board Royal College of Physicians, London.

He is currently a non executive director of Irish Life and Permanent Plc. and Kingspan Plc.
Chair, Board of the National Concert Hall, Dublin