Leo Varadkar To Step Down From Leadership of Ireland
Photo by Houses of the Oireachtas, CC BY 2.0
Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar announced he is stepping down from being the Taoiseach as soon as a replacement is named.
During his time as taoiseach Mr Varadkar championed referendums to change the Irish constitution legalising same-sex marriage and abortion.
Mr Varadkar also listed work to improve the affordability of childcare among his achievements as well as increasing government spending on arts and culture, international development, and public infrastructure.
He also conceded that “there are areas where we have been much less successful” adding “I hope you’ll forgive me if I leave it to others to point them out on a day like this.”
Mr Varadkar said his reasons for stepping down were “both personal and political”.
He said that he felt that the current government “could be re-elected” but he he did not feel he was the “best person for the job anymore”.
The Irish government parties have said that they do not expect Wednesday’s announcement to trigger a general election.
Nick Bradshaw Taoiseach Leo Varadkar leaves after speaking to the media at Government Buildings in DublinNick Bradshaw
In the Irish general election of 2020 Mr Varadkar led his party to a third-place finish in terms of number of seats in Dáil Éireann, the lower house in the country’s parliament.
As part of the coalition deal struck between the parties it was agreed that Mr Varadkar and Micheál Martin would hold the position of taoiseach for two years each.
In 2020 Mr Martin was appointed taoiseach with Mr Varadkar serving as his tánaiste (deputy PM), before the two swapped roles in 2022.
Speaking after Mr Varadkar’s resignation announcement, Mr Martin said he had been “surprised” by the decision.
“I want to take the opportunity to thank him sincerely, we got on very well,” Mr Martin added.
Mr Martin said he remained committed to fulfilling the full term of the coalition government.
Eamon Ryan, leader of the Green Party, the smallest of the three coalition partners, said Mr Varadkar had been “an energetic and committed leader of the country who was always supportive of his government colleagues”.
Mr Ryan said his party looked forward to the the Fine Gael leadership contest and the election of a new taoiseach.
In the interim, he said, the government would continue to fulfil their mandate.
