*Simon Harris TD. Photograph: Arthur Ellis
TWO CLARE TDs have confirmed they will vote against Simon Harris’ (FG) nomination as Taoiseach.
Wicklow TD is to be nominated as Taoiseach on April 7th having assumed the leadership of Fine Gael following Leo Varadkar’s (FG) shock resignation in the past fortnight.
Harris faced no contest for the leadership after forming a strong campaign which saw several Oireachtas members move quickly to declare their support including Clare Senator, Martin Conway (FG).
There is set to be no such support for the former Health Minister from Violet-Anne Wynne (IND) or Michael McNamara (IND) with the duo confirming they will not be backing him in next week’s vote.
Cathal Crowe TD (FF) will be voting in favour of Harris while the county’s remaining TD, Joe Carey (FG) has remained out of office since taking ill in March 2023.
Outlining his reasons for voting against Harris, Deputy McNamara pointed to the Fine Gael’s leader record in Health and Justice. He also hit out at claims from Matt Carthy (SF) that Independents had been “propping up” the Government since February 2020.
He stated, “Sinn Féin supported the government’s referenda proposals, supported the government’s Hate Speech Bill, supported the government’s immigration policies they now call ‘open borders’ without any real criticism, supported the government’s Covid response and suggested holed budgets. Instead of opposing government policy, Sinn Féin just sniped at personalities to waste time and try to hide their lack of policy and leadership on issues that matter to people. I’m happy to stand over every vote for and against the government, which Sinn Féin ignores. The only opposition provided to the government in the current Dáil has come from within the three Independent groups. Sinn Féin’s failure to provide alternatives or leadership in opposition has been of huge support to this government.
“I have confirmed that I will not be voting for Simon Harris to become Taoiseach because of his record as Minister for Health and Minister for Justice, immigration during this Dáil term. But, if elected, I will wish him well as leader of our country,” Deputy McNamara said.
Deputy Wynne did not believe a new leader was the right move for the country. “The idea of changing the face will be in effect changing the party, I just feel that is not stability and so that is why I won’t be supporting the incoming Taoiseach”.
She had previously the decision of Varadkar to step down and commented, “the more that steps down, the better. I have to say, after working with them all in Leinster House, I can’t see his successor being much better. It’s not Leo’s ethics or morals, I question. It’s the whole lot of them”.
Sinn Féin “will not be much better” than Fine Gael or Fianna Fáil, she maintained, “considering the backroom boys on the override everything the TDs say”.
