Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
LEO VARADKAR HAS raised the prospect of another rotating Taoiseach arrangement if the current coalition is re-elected.
Varadkar insisted the same Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and Green Party coalition could return to serve for another term.
He said if the two main parties were able to form a government, and emerged with roughly the same number of seats, then it would be possible for them to again share the position of Taoiseach, like he and Micheál Martin have done in the current mandate.
Speaking at his end of year media briefing, Fine Gael leader Varadkar stressed he did not yet have a general election date in mind, and was focusing on policy delivery, but he added: “I anticipate that all three parties will run independently in the next election.
“We will have our own manifestos, seek our own mandates, but, certainly, I believe that this is a Government that can be re-elected.
“We’re four years together now. We’ve worked well together and while I know that opinion polls don’t predict the outcome of elections – because they certainly didn’t predict the last two or most elections around the world at the moment – if you do believe in opinion polls, you’ll see that the Government parties have combined support of over 40%.
“Now that is not far short of what is required for a government to be re-elected and I’d like us to continue our work and would like to see this Government re-elected.
“And, you know, it’s even possible that we could see a return of the arrangement around a rotating Taoiseach.
“We’ve seen in two elections in a row now where Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael were really only within 1% of each other, only a handful of seats, and I think if we find ourselves in a scenario where the two parties are roughly the same size then that possibility then exists for the future too and for the next government, but it’s the people who decide that ultimately.”
Asked if Green Party leader Eamon Ryan could be offered a stint as Taoiseach if the coalition was re-elected, Varadkar made clear that could only happen if the Greens secured around the same number of seats as Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael.
Meanwhile, Ryan has insisted the coalition should see out its full term in government.
“My view is we should go to the end,” he said at his own end of year media briefing.
“I see a lot of my colleagues in Europe and various coalition arrangements in place. They are always difficult and challenging. Ours is probably one of the more functioning governments in terms of European coalitions. At a time when that is a premium, in a world of real uncertainty, where the US and UK politics is not in great shape, why wouldn’t we keep going when we have a relatively stable government?
“We have rows and there are real challenges, but we have managed it the last three-and-a-half years and I don’t see why we shouldn’t go the full course.”
Ryan said his party would not campaign in the next general election on the basis of a joint Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and Green ticket.
“We think we have to work with every option, because we think the climate imperative belongs to everyone, so therefore I don’t think we would go into an election with a pre-arrangement in terms of a voting pact or anything like that,” he said.
“We have never done it and I don’t expect to. I mean no disrespect to the two parties involved, but that is not how we tend to operate.”
Ryan also rejected any suggestion there was a disconnect between his party and rural Ireland.
He insisted the party could be successful in places like Kerry and was prepared to counter arguments put by Kerry TD brothers Michael and Danny Healy-Rae, who are vocal critics of many of Ryan’s policies.
“Why would our agenda not apply in Kerry just as much as it does in Dublin,” he said.
“Kerry people are just as smart and just as cottoned on as to what are going on.
“I am absolutely confident they will vote for some of the brilliant candidates we have down there.”
Asked if he was taking on the Healy-Raes, he said: “Yeah, absolutely.”
He added: “I think it is a choice there. That is a real choice facing the people of Kerry. And I think we have a candidate in every ward in Kerry (in the local elections) and My God some of them are really good.”
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Another FFG record ..
Collectively , them two political parties have ruined Ireland . Vote for the cat next door rather than FFG
@BL Music: I actually would prefer to vote for my cat next door instead of the useless opposition.unfortunately.
@John Terry: the cat next door to me gets walked on a lead. True story.
@John Terry: If you do the same thing , don’t expect different results . Nobody could be as inept as the current shower. Look at homelessness’s, health, crime , the amount of people leaving the country , the decline in our cities , vulture funds, price gouging, the erosion of our neutrality , loss of our little sovereignty… the list goes on and on .. Anything would be better
@SF Means Sh!t 4 Free: but it’d give the powers that be a boot in the @r$€ that they need to do better. Seriously like, cost of living and housing aside, even if you or your child get injured/badly ill over the weekend and get referred to hospital you can be there for up to 24 hours before being seen or even worse, kept in until Monday morning until someone is available. The acceptance of poor standards in every ministry in this state is a dark legacy for FFG, let alone the vast sums of OUR money is wasted year in year out for the taxes and levies we pay.
@James Reardon: everyone in this country would love a better government,but unfortunately we have weak opposition.I’ve voted social democrats the last few years ,not that I want them in government but because they are to me the only option on the ballot paper.sad reality.
@John Terry: I was Labour until they screwed over their whole voting base. Never again. I’ll keep voting SF out of protest, let them put up or shut up.
@BL Music: all populist tripe
How on earth are people meant to get by when a bog standard apartment with 1 room is minimum €1500 per month?
@Sylvia Power: sharing…
@no no no: So share a bed with someone in that 1 bed Apartment is it? Right.. You’re part of the problem.
@Chett Richards: Do you disapprove of couples living in sin together or something??
@Sylvia Power: Emigrate. Hard to believe that it’s cheaper to live in Switzerland at this stage.
@Fallible Guy: London too.
We now live in a society where it’s survival of the fittest and duck everyone else. Capitalism as we know it, is no longer fit for purpose.
@Mike Dunne: it’s the same capitalism that generates the wealth that pays for the services those in need use
@Oisin CK: The same capitalism that needs to be bailed out by the taxpayers after the capitalist system facilated by politicians fail. The same taxpayers are then forced into austerity inflicted by the same politicians to repay for the gangsterism of capitalism. Remember the €60 Billions plus still owed by every citizen of this state due to the gangsterism of the banks and developers facilated by the same political parties that are again in power.
Brutal,they’re destroying peoples lives with they’re inability to make the necessary decisions to solve the problem but lining they’re pockets up well, terrible to say they’ve had almost a decade of this going on and all that’s happening is it’s getting worse,I really don’t want to have to watch my kids emigrate because of the future here which basically is work every hour sent to you and have sweet **** all what a joke for a rich country it’s so badly managed
Typical. And yet so many people here want you to believe a Party that’s never had any power in the state is the biggest threat to your existence.
@Chris O’Brien: opposition parties should be running away in the polls but they are not.that tells you they are not trusted.
@Chris O’Brien: plenty of people are aware of the damage SF/IRA has done to this state as well as their numerous failures in Govt just up the road in NI.
Not surprising. A rising population and no new houses available to buy for rental or to owner occupy. The council and AHBs are buying up all the new housing. Everything new hoovered up.
A split society. Lots of extra housing for people in need, but lots of extra people in need as Ireland’s self serving leftie lawyer elite foist a load of legal obligations on the rest of its citizens as they soak up all the money from it via their bloated pay, fees and investments in asylum centre property.
Private rental sector is contracting, less supply leads to higher prices, or new supply is new build to rent, with no cap on the rent due to previous letting.
It’s simplistic to call it landlord greed. Interest rates go up, so landlords pay more interest to the bank, they pass this cost to tenant. Maintenance/building costs go up etc.
Pre-existing tenancies are almost all limited by RPZ legislation and anyone who evades it should be reported. Any landlord not paying tax should be reported and done for interest and penalties.
Blame the open door immigration policy, the inflation driven by large corporate activity due to our open economy policy, the “Ireland of a thousand welcomes” messages issued by Roderick O’Gorman in multiple non European languages about giving refugees free own door accomodation, the EU sending us lots of their excess refugees, etc.
In an effort to protect tenants, and keep rents low to keep the left happy, they have inadvertently done the opposite created this disaster.
Before the RTB, 15 years ago there was so supply chasing too few tenants. Landlords had no choice but to keep cutting rents. It didn’t matter if you got evicted as you could move into the same house down the street and probably get a better deal.
The quicker they remove the RTB and reset all the tenancy laws, the better.
@Ray Winters:
I work in the sector, RTB are a complete waste of space.
But trying to suggest the reason not enough houses is ludicrous.
The reason the rents dropped was we had 10 years of building 75,000 houses per year when we needed 50,000.
Since then we have 10 years at 25,000 when we needed 50,000
Another lie by the journal this week. Rents in Cavan have rose by over 100% this year alone. It’s a shit hole of a town and we are nearly paying Dublin prices
@Thomas Reddy:
I was actually going to rubbish your statement by going on Daft and quoting a real add but then….?
Up to €1,700 for a 2 bed apt in Cavan town?? Jeez
@P.J. Nolan: That’s a local farmer renting that apartment. She bought about ten properties in the last three years and has kicked tenants out and put the rent up by 150%. The local FF politicians Brendan Smith and Niamh Smyth know about this and have done absolutely nothing about it.
@Thomas Reddy: you will likely find the local politicians are landlords too
@P.J. Nolan: I get an 2 bed beside central London for less then that! Says it all
FFG. Treasonous.
@lWOk0fWf: FF and FG = democracy, jobs and investment. SF/IRA = thugs and flight of investment
@Oisin CK: nonsense.
Stockholm syndrome right there.
Would be great to live in a country where the struggles of average people and homeless children would get reported on daily and not be covered up and ignored by the biggest media companies under orders of the government. All hail FFG, we sheep shall obey!
I know yer all gonna hate me here. I have an apartment which I let (just 1), I pay %52 taxes on this, I rent for 1600 and I get 770, each time a tenant leaves I need to put approx. 3k of work into renovation. Anytime goes wrong I need to fix it. The government gets most the money not me.
We lived happy life four years ago with 5 children in one bedroom apartment. Many people just blame everyone and everything but this is their own problem! Nobody needs to know that!
The government need to go ASAP the cost of rents in this country are a disgrace a tiny 3 bed my daughter lives in with 3kids costs €1500 amth she couldn’t keep up mortgage repayment on her home after her husband took his own life during lockdown as he felt he couldn’t provide for them all. They have 2 kids with special needs. I don’t understand how they can get away with allowing greedy landlords to charge so much, a friend of mine signed a lease on a home in Sweden just 2 days ago for his wife and family 6 bedroom house the rent is just €1100 amth we are being robbed every direction we go in this country it has to stop
Looking absolutely forward too voteing for SF
have your say