John Bruton was the EU Ambassador to the United States from 2004 to 2009, and previously the Irish Prime Minister. As a former Irish Prime Minister (Taoiseach), John helped transform the Irish economy into the "Celtic Tiger", one of the fastest growing economies in the world. During his time in office from 1994 to 1997, the Irish economy grew at an annual average rate of 8.7%. He was also deeply involved in the Northern Irish Peace Process leading to the 1998 Good Friday Agreement. While Prime Minister, John presided over a successful Irish EU Presidency in 1996 and helped finalise the Stability and Growth Pact, which governs the management of the single European currency: the Euro. He represented the EU at Summit meetings with the President of the United States and with the Prime Ministers of Canada, Japan, China and Korea. Before being appointed EU Ambassador to the United States in 2004, John served as a leading member of the caucus that drafted the first-ever European Constitution. He was Vice President of the European People's Party from 1999 to 2005. In May 2010 John was announced as the chairman of the newly-formed financial services body, IFSC Ireland. His main role is to promote the Republic of Ireland as a location of choice for international financial services. John was first elected to the Irish Parliament ("Dáil Éireann") in 1969 at the age of 22 as a member of the Fine Gael Party, becoming Party Leader in 1990 and leading it into government in 1994. He previously served as Ireland’s Minister for Finance, Minister for Industry & Energy, and Minister for Trade, Commerce & Tourism. Currently, John is chairman of IFSC Ireland, a private-sector body set up to develop the financial services industry in Ireland. He is a member of the boards of Ingersoll Rand, Montpelier, and the Centre for European Policy Studies. He is also a distinguished fellow at the Centre for Transatlantic Relations and a visiting fellow at the European Institute in the London School of Economics. Additionally, he acts as an advisor to Fairobserver, focusing mainly on the areas of politics, finance, and economics, as well as on issues pertaining to Europe.