Kenny set to tell FG next week that he’ll resign ‘in mid-May’

ENDA Kenny has given his clearest indication that he is on the cusp of stepping down as Taoiseach, hinting he may tell his party colleagues what his plans are for the leadership in just over a week’s time.

The Taoiseach, who was in The Hague yesterday to meet the prime ministers of the Netherlands and Denmark, said he wants to help ‘lay the ground rules’ for Brexit, after which point he will make his intentions ‘very clear.’

The ground rules, he said earlier in the day, will be set at an EU summit meeting in Brussels next Saturday. Mr Kenny initially made light of questions about his plans for the leadership.

He said: ‘I’ve already made my position very clear that once I’m happy with having the ground rules for Brexit in place I’ll make my intentions very clear.’

When pressed further on whether this means that he will step down by the summer, he said: ‘I’ve already said in respect of making my intentions clear that I want to deal with this matter next Saturday and hopefully we get clarity about that.’

He added that he would then speak to the Fine Gael parliamentary party and ‘make my intentions very clear after that, as I’ve said already’.

There were further suggestions last night that, having spoken to close confidants, Mr Kenny may be looking at stepping down in mid-May. The Taoiseach also referenced the issue of his departure later on in the day when he was forced to correct Ruth Peetoom, the party chair of Holland’s Christian Democratic Appeal party, who told an audience Mr Kenny was Ireland’s longest ever serving parliamentarian and now the longest-serving taoiseach.

Taking the stage for a lecture on Brexit, he joked that this was not the case and that some people at home believed he has already served too long. He said: ‘On a little technical adjustment, I haven’t been the longest serving member of parliament ever. In the early part of our country’s independence, there were those who served for longer periods.

‘My service as the taoiseach is the longest serving of my own party, not the longest serving taoiseach ever. But no matter. There are some people back in Ireland who would say, well, he’s served beyond his mark anyway.’

His comments are likely to allay the fears of TDs and ministers who are becoming anxious once again that the party is still unprepared for an election with Mr Kenny at the helm. He had previously indicated he wanted to stay on until the situation around establishing a power-sharing executive in the North was resolved.

But that has now been delayed for two months because of the UK election, and Kenny did not suggest yesterday that he will remain for the extended period to wait for a new executive.

Instead, he said: ‘In respect of Northern Ireland, I’m disappointed that, following the Assembly elections, that it was not possible for the parties to put together an executive. That’s why, in the run-up to this situation, we had all-island forums in Ireland to hear the voice of Northern Ireland.

‘It would have been very helpful if there was a coherence of voice now from Northern Ireland in respect of the future.

‘So, it appears as if the legislation being put through by secretary of state [James] Brokenshire would extend the period and that’s important in the current circumstances. But it does appear then as if it would drift through the marching season, the Commons will probably have a long recess after the British election, so negotiations to put an executive together may not be completed for quite some time yet. I think that’s a disappointment.’ His comments come only days after Fine Gael TD Noel Rock said Mr Kenny should step down from his role stating that now is an ideal time.

‘I’ve made my position clear’