No Harkin vote for Harris due to long-running government neglect of north west

SLIGO-LEITRIM TD Marian Harkin declared that she would not be voting for Simon Harris to be elected as Taoiseach in this week’s Dail sitting.

Harkin was speaking ahead of the election, which Harris won by a margin 88 votes to 69, where she outlined her reasons for not supporting him.

“Minister Harris, I cannot vote for you as Taoiseach because after four years of this Government and 13 years of Fine Gael in government you have not delivered for the northwest,” Sligo Leitrim TD Marian Harkin during the Dáil debate on the nomination of Simon Harris TD as Taoiseach.

“In the key critical areas affecting people’s lives successive Governments in which Fine Gael has participated have not delivered. You have not addressed or delivered housing for the northwest. CSO housing commencements show that in 2023 the four counties I represent, Sligo, Leitrim, North Roscommon and South Donegal were in the bottom 10 counties when it came to housing commencements on a per capita basis.

“You have not delivered on health,” Deputy Harkin continued, “our trolley-watch figures show that from 2011 when Fine Gael entered government the numbers on trolleys at Sligo University Hospital have increased by over 250% while the national increase is 50%.

Turning to agriculture Ms Harkin focused on the Government’s support for the Nature Restoration Law, “You have not delivered on agriculture where you were cheerleaders for the Nature Restoration Law with no mitigating outcomes for the drained peatlands in the northwest and no ring-fenced funding.

“Earlier, the outgoing Taoiseach Mr Varadkar, who I wish well in his retirement from office, spoke of the way in which global mega trends influence outcomes, however, in my view the only way to counter those trends, in the context of balanced regional development, is to have systemic and substantial policy-driven change across all government departments.”

“Finally, Minister, I fully recognize that today is a momentous day for you and your family and while I won't be voting for you as Taoiseach, on a personal level I wish you and your family all that is good,” Deputy Harkin concluded.