Would someone please call a taxi to take Enda away?

EVEN at this late stage, it doesn’t appear to have dawned on Enda Kenny that the game really is up. Increasingly he looks like a dinner party guest who doesn’t realise the time has come to call a taxi.

Everyone else has gone home, the wine has run out, the dessert plates have been cleared and the hosts are getting ready for bed. But there will always be someone too thick or self-obsessed to notice that

they have outstayed their welcome. Almost four weeks have passed since Mr Kenny told Fine Gael colleagues that he would deal ‘effectively and conclusively’ with the issue of his leadership on his return from the States.

Following the address in which he made that commitment, the Taoiseach reportedly received a standing ovation from members of the parliamentary party.

I would hazard a guess that the thunderous applause was down to the TDs and senators’ relief at the confirmation he was actually ready to go.

Now, however, it doesn’t look quite so cut and dried.

By loftily declaring that there are ‘priorities that take precedence over anything else’, Mr Kenny is clearly stalling for time.

The priorities he speaks of are Brexit and the Stormont Executive. Forgive me if this sounds impolite, but why exactly does he think his continuing presence is so crucial to either situation?

It isn’t as if he has demonstrated his Midas touch in other spheres.

No, this is yet another example of a senior politician being unable to get off the stage.

The simple fact of the matter is that Enda Kenny is hanging around like bad smell. Worse still, he seems to be the only person who hasn’t noticed.