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09th May 2018

Leo Varadkar named as one of the ‘World’s Brightest under 40’ in international list

Kate Demolder

Leo Varadkar

High praise indeed.

Leo Varadkar has been named on yet another international list, commending him for his past achievements.

As part of an international list, the World Economic Forum (WEF) has named the Taoiseach as one of the 100 most promising business leaders and public servants under 40 years of age.

This year’s young global leaders were chosen “because of their ground-breaking work, creative approaches to problems and ability to build bridges across cultures and between business, government and civil society”.

Varadkar was chosen because of his determination to provide free healthcare to children and the elderly, as well as his work in producing Ireland’s National Maternity Strategy.

“His election as Taoiseach (Prime Minister) marks many firsts,” reads a description of Varadkar on the WEF website.

“He is the openly gay son of an Indian immigrant and a former medical doctor who became Ireland’s youngest-ever Prime Minister in 2017. He also served as Minister for Health, where he introduced free general practice care for all children under six and seniors over 70 years as well as publishing Ireland’s first ever National Maternity Strategy.”

Varadkar is joined on the list by an Irish woman, Barbara Ann Bernard, the CEO of equity fund Wincrest Capital Ltd, with the WEF highlighting her range of successes in the fields of finance and philosophy.

“A leader in asset management and capital markets, she is renowned for her ingrained value-driven investment philosophy. Beyond the financial markets, she serves as the founder and Race Director of United World College (UWC) Triathlon Bahamas, raising scholarship funds for Bahamian students to attend UWC.”

The Taoiseach was also recently named on TIME’s 100 Most Influential People of 2018 list, appearing alongside the likes of Justin Trudeau, Donald Trump, Kim Jong-un and Prince Harry.

He was celebrated as a symbol of Ireland’s changing values and for his role in the Brexit negotiations.

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