Vote for Taoiseach was in ‘cringe territory’, Alan Kelly says

An Irish Government has never before been created in circumstances as farcical as the new minority administration, former minister for the environment Alan Kelly has said.

The deputy Labour leader said there was finally a Government in place but it was “built on sand”.

“What we saw this morning on the vote for taoiseach was bizarre and embarrassing for this House. To be frank it was cringe territory. It was simply incredible,” he said of the last minute efforts to bring Independent TDs on board before the vote for Taoiseach.

Speaking after Enda Kenny named his new Cabinet, Mr Kelly claimed the Independents were trying to “stroke out one last pay bill”, outside the Dáil chamber. This was “not new politics. It is old politics at worst,” he added.

Mr Kelly said the Government was “not viable” and the figures did not match up to implement all the promises pledged. “Where is all the funding for these going to come from,” he asked.

But he said to Mr Kenny “history will be extremely kind to you Taoiseach,” and he said he hoped this administration would co-operate in the way the last had.

Water responsibility

He noted his former department had been divided into three but said it was unclear who would have responsibility for water.

The Taoiseach in his speech said one of his first priorities was Britain’s referendum on exiting the EU.

He said: “Prime Minister Cameron very kindly phoned me this afternoon to express his congratulations. I said that I would do whatever I could usefully do to help in the run up to the referendum.”

Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin criticised the last government’s priorities which were “public relations rather than policy planning”.

He welcomed the “re-orientation of the department of the environment towards housing” but said action was needed across all areas.

Sinn Féin Sligo-Leitrim TD Martin Kenny congratulated the new Cabinet on what was a “special day” for the Government.

But he said Fianna Fail feel they have pulled the ultimately stroke here in which they have have designed a programme for government, handed it to Fine Gael and opted to sit on the opposition benches and take no responsibility for its implementation. This is the biggest scam in the history of Irish politics.

“But I don’t believe they will get away with it. I believe that this Dáil will, once and for all, expose Fianna Fáil’s populist, unprincipled and self serving approach to politics.”

He insisted “Sinn Féin will lead the opposition in this Dáil”.