Ireland is set to have a new Prime Minister soon after Simon Harris won an uncontested internal election to succeed Leo Varadkar as leader of the ruling Fine Gael party.
At 37, Harris will be Ireland’s youngest ever Prime Minister, but her focus was on reconnecting with the past.
He promised to help small businesses, focus on law and order and tackle uncontrolled mass migration.
Herris will be elected Irish Prime Minister when parliament next meets on April 9.
Reuters reported:
“He will have no more than a year to save the coalition from defeat in the parliamentary elections. Polls over the past three years have pointed to Sinn Fein, a left-wing party that supports unification with British-run Northern Ireland, as the favorite to lead the next government.
“This is the time to reset Fine Gael,” Harris told hundreds of members at a packed party in the Midlands town of Athlone. “Under my leadership, Fine Gael supports business, particularly small businesses… Fine Gael supports the family farm… Fine Gael supports law and order, on the side of An Garda Siochána (police ), where our streets are safe and crime can never go unchecked.”
This comes after Prime Minister Leo Varadkar unexpectedly announced his departure in the aftermath of a crushing defeat in the latest referendum.
Read more: Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar announces resignation after crushing referendum defeat
Harris portrays herself as an “accidental politician”, but has spent much of her adult life in parliament.
“He is one of the most visible Irish government ministers and a strong media performer. His intense presence on social media led one opponent in parliament to dub Harris the ‘TikTok taoiseach’ (Irish prime minister).”
Harris will have little wiggle room to address the housing crisis and record numbers of migrants.
“Harris said Ireland must move to a “more planned and sustainable” migration model and a system that is “fair and firm”.
The opposition Sinn Fein party has a 5-6 percentage point lead over the stalled ruling Fine Gael party.
“We have been too left-wing for too long,” veteran MP and former minister Michael Ring told national broadcaster RTE. “If it doesn’t take this opportunity (to make changes), Fine Gael and Simon Harris will pay a heavy price in the coming months.”
The Guardian reported:
“Harris said he wants centre-right Fine Gael – which governs with fellow Conservatives Fianna Fáil and the Green Party – to return to core values, including making work pay, being tough on law and order and supporting farmers.
‘Fine Gael stands for support for business, particularly small businesses, across the length and breadth of this country. Fine Gael is for making work pay, to ensure we value work and the people who go to work.”
To applause from the audience he added: “Fine Gael stands for law and order.”
Both Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil are behind Sinn Féin, the left-wing nationalist party, but support for all three parties has fallen after referendums in which all pushed for the losing “yes” vote.
To know more:
The Irish referendum changes to the Constitution were soundly defeated, demonstrating the disconnect between the Liberal government’s policies and the people