Joan Burton claims misunderstanding over foreign affairs appointment

Tánaiste Joan Burton has denied she ever wanted to be minister for foreign affairs.

Labour Party colleague Eamon Gilmore wrote in his recently published book that Ms Burton was disappointed after he took the role himself.

But the Tánaiste has insisted this was a “misunderstanding”.

“I think the discussion around foreign affairs was that I pointed out that there were a lot of people in the Labour Party who could do that job very well, and there was a look back at what were the points and what were the lessons that should be taken [from the last time Labour were in government],” she said.

“One of the advices – which was published at the time – was that no leader of the Labour Party in government should be both Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, because the burden of the two jobs, the need to be away from the country a significant amount of time, was not the easiest role for somebody who was also going to be a busy party leader.”

In the book, Inside the Room: The Untold Story of Ireland's Crisis Government, Mr Gilmore said Ms Burton was "visibly shocked" at her appointment as Minister for Social Protection. He wrote: "She asked me about the allocation of the other Labour portfolios and the answer did not quell her growing anger. She told me that I was making a big mistake in appointing her as Minister for Social Protection, that it would go down very badly in the party."