Kathleen Lynch (born 7 June 1953) is an Irish former Labour Party politician who served as Minister of State from 2011 to 2016.

[3][4][5] On 15 July 2014, she was redesignated as Minister of State with special responsibility for Primary Care, Mental Health and Disability, after her brief in Equality was allocated to Aodhán Ó Riordáin.

[8] Shortly after losing her seat Lynch gave an interview to Catherine Shanahan of the Irish Examiner in which, among other things, she praised former cabinet colleagues James Reilly and Alan Shatter, was scathing of Leo Varadkar, Michael McDowell and Róisín Shortall, spoke of her preference for Brendan Howlin (or even Seán Sherlock) over Alan Kelly, and stated that she had no idea as to why Máiría Cahill was chosen as the party's Seanad by-election candidate.

[9][10] In April 2008, she was involved in a controversy where she wrote a letter testifying the good character of the parents of a man accused of raping two teenage sisters.

If my action has in any way added to the ordeal of the two victims in this case, then I deeply regret that and offer them my apologies.