SIMON COVENEY HAS announced that he will not be contesting the next general election and is “stepping out of politics”.
The Fine Gael TD made the announcement in a lengthy statement shared on X.
In the statement, he thanked party members in his constituency, saying: “Being elected for 26 years has been the privilege of my life. I will forever be grateful for the faith people in Cork South Central have put in me.
Today I write to FG members in my constituency to say thank you.
— Simon Coveney (@simoncoveney) July 10, 2024
Being elected for 26 yrs has been the privilege of my life. I will forever be grateful for the faith people in CorkSouthCentral have put in me.
Now is the right time for renewal in FG & for me to change direction. pic.twitter.com/4occw2d0PO
He said that now is the right time “for renewal in Fine Gael and for me to change direction”.
“All my political career I have tried to do what’s right for Cork, for the county that I love and for our party that I’ve given my life to since the age of 25,” he said.
“However, I have come to the view some time ago that it’s time for me to step out of politics at the next election, after the extraordinary privilege of serving this constituency for 26 years.
I hope you can respect my decision to seek new horizons in life outside Dáil Éireann.
In April, Coveney confirmed he would step aside from Cabinet, saying Taoiseach Simon Harris had made it clear he wanted to create a “new-look Fine Gael” and to promote new talent in the party. He had been Minister for Enterprise since December 2022.
“I wouldn’t be leaving if I didn’t believe the future was bright,” Coveney said.
“Right across the country we saw new candidates emerge in the recent local elections. Our party is strong and ambitious, our new leader has brought an energy that is reinvigorating the organisation at every level.”
Speaking to RedFM’s The Neil Prendeville Show this morning, he said he had been thinking for some time about whether he would run in the upcoming election.
“I’ve given all of my working life to politics so far, and so I did think a lot about that with my family over the last few years,” he said.
When the leadership change happened in Fine Gael, it was a trigger moment for me to look to the future, both politically and outside of politics.
“I certainly don’t want to be hanging around in politics for any longer than I’m making a significant contribution, if you know what I mean.”
He said he was not retiring due to being “intimidated” by negativity on social media, but acknowledged that attitudes towards politicians online had become “more aggressive”.
Coveney said he was looking forward to seeing what he might be able to contribute to and with who outside of politics.
“I am lucky, given the career I’ve had, I’ll have options available to me. I still very much think about trying to use the experience I have for greater good questions as well as potentially joining the private sector.
“We’ll have to wait and see how that develops. I don’t really want to go into that yet. I’ll be very open about it, if and when something happens on that.”
Coveney was first elected to the Dáil at the age of 25 in 1998, in a by-election following the death of his father Hugh Coveney. He had been in Cabinet since 2011.
He has held a number of ministerial roles, including Minister for Foreign Affairs from June 2017 to December 2022. He is credited with playing a pivotal role in the Brexit negotiations during this time.
Coveney also held the position of Minister for Defence, Minister for Housing and Minister for Agriculture, and was a member of the European Parliament from July 2004 to June 2007.
In 2017, following the resignation of then-taoiseach Enda Kenny as party leader, Coveney contested the Fine Gael leadership election. He lost out to Leo Varadkar, who appointed him deputy leader of the party.
He served in that position until April this year, when Social Enterprise Minister Heather Humphreys took up the role. He also served as Tánaiste from 2017 to 2020.
In 2021, he survived a no confidence motion in the Dáil tabled by Sinn Féin in response to his handling of his nomination of Katherine Zappone to a UN role.
The former children’s minister and independent TD was to be appointed to a new role as Ireland’s Special Envoy to the UN for freedom of opinion and expression.
Zappone withdrew from the selection after it emerged that Taoiseach Micheál Martin had not been made aware of the nomination before it was brought to Cabinet on 28 July.
Reacting to the news, Taoiseach Simon Harris said in a statement that Coveney is “not just a colleague, he is a friend”.
“He has served his constituency, his party and his country with distinction. Most particularly his contribution to protecting our national interest during Brexit is an outstanding legacy,” Harris said.
“I want to thank him and wish his family the very best.”
Social Enterprise Minister and Fine Gael deputy leader Heather Humphreys said Coveney was a great colleague and friend and wished him luck “in the next chapter”.
“The work [Coveney] did to protect Ireland’s interests during Brexit and ensure there would be no return to a hard border on our island should never be forgotten or underestimated.”
Tánaiste Micheál Martin wished Coveney the best in his retirement from politics, saying: “I have worked constructively with Simon as a TD for Cork South Central, and in Government over the last four years.
“He has a strong commitment to public service & has been a consistent advocate for Cork.”
Julian Smith, the former Northern Ireland Secretary who, alongside Coveney, published a deal to restore the power-sharing executive in Stormont in 2020, said he was “very sorry” to see him leave politics.
“An exceptional public servant over many critical and turbulent years,” Smith added.
SDLP MP Colum Eastwood thanked Coveney “for all the work and energy you put into supporting the political institutions in the North”.
He said “the cold, wet nights at Stormont working into the early hours” with Smith to restore power-sharing “were deeply appreciated”.
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