Enda will quit in a couple of weeks
He won’t be drawn on the FG leadership – but Finian McGrath says...
ENDA KENNY will resign as Taoiseach in a few weeks, according to Minister of State for Disability Issues, Finian McGrath.
Reflecting on almost a year in office, the super junior minister admitted that the Partnership for Government has looked shaky in recent days, with a rift threatening between Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil over water charges and Garda scandals.
Mr McGrath said: ‘My ambition is if I can get a few things done as minister. I’ve set myself short-term targets: the disability sector was devastated over the last eight years. Personally I do 100-day plans, then we do another 100 days and another 100 days.
‘It was looking very close last week with the water and the Garda, but things have stabilised again. I think we will get longer than people think.’
But when asked if Taoiseach Enda Kenny would be leading the partnership onwards, he was adamant.
‘No, no, he will definitely be gone. He will gone in the next couple of weeks, absolutely. He will stick to his timetable. I think his timeline in
‘Enda will stick to his timetable’ ‘Half my friends were on the picket line’
his head is the end of May. That is my personal view. I might be wrong. People might say he might hang on until Brexit or the Pope visits, but, no, the answer is no,’ he added.
Last May, the Irish Mail on Sunday revealed there was ‘a firm belief’ in Fine Gael that Enda Kenny was determined to hold on until this Thursday, April 20, so he can surpass John A Costello’s record as the longest-serving Fine Gael taoiseach.
Despite this, Mr McGrath would not be drawn on who would be choice for leader, confining himself to describing the contest as a twohorse race between Leo Varadkar and Simon Coveney.
He gets on well with both contenders, he said diplomatically.
Referring to Mr Varadkar’s current role as Minister for Social Protection, he said: ‘We work closer with Leo and they do a lot with disabilities. It’s a very good relationship, very business-like, but he’s very open with me. I’d see him every day.’
He said Mr Coveney is open to including plans for people with disabilities in national housing plans. He said both frontrunners have a good appreciation of the new political landscape. He added: ‘Simon “got” Independents, while some of the old Fine Gaelers didn’t – they were kind of tolerating us.
‘Simon and Leo are more progressive; Simon Harris, Eoghan Murphy the same way. They see that this is Irish politics now – and what is wrong with that?’
Describing himself as an outsider working on the inside, he said that since taking office in May, he and his Independent Alliance colleagues worked on bringing their informal slogan of ‘radical but responsible’ to Cabinet.
And as the parent of a woman living with an intellectual disability, with an understanding of the challenges facing families, the Minister of State finds himself making tough choices: ‘There is a big mindset against people with disabilities. They are not seen as people with ability. We focus too much on the disabilities. Clíodhna has loads of abilities as far as I’m concerned.’
Listing some of the organisations that have approached him about extra funding, he said: ‘I sit down and I say, which is the highest priority? It’s not easy, but there’s no point being at this level if you are not prepared to make decisions.’
His other daughter, Caoimhe, works in the pharmaceutical industry, and he says the two sisters are very close. This helped in the times after the death of his wife, he said: ‘Anne passed away seven years ago. That was very difficult.’
His duties and his empathy for the rights of the disabled clashed again during recent protests at the Dáil calling for the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to be ratified.
Mr McGrath said: ‘Half my friends were on the picket line. Yes, it felt like I crossed a picket line. It’s heartbreaking.’
His main focus has been on finding money to fill the gaps left by cutbacks during the recession.
He added: ‘I am very proud of the legislation in relation to free medical cards as a right for the 9,800 children with the Domiciliary Care Allowance. We have been talking about that for 20 years.’
One of his biggest challenges has been dealing with the abuse case centred around a woman known as Grace. He sounds angry as he discusses the case, saying: ‘I still can’t get over how could professional people do that, let it happen?’
On the subject of an election, he said: ‘I’d love to finish the job, I’d like to stay in disabilities. I’ve done five or six things, but there are a lot of things I’d like to do.’