Local TDs Burke and Troy await ministerial decisions
Rodney Farry
Although he has been chosen represent the Irish government at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Longford Westmeath outgoing Minister for Enterprise Peter Burke says he is taking nothing for granted when it comes to securing a place at the cabinet table in the new government.
It is widely expected that Deputy Burke will retain his place in the cabinet when the Ministerial appointments are made later today (Wednesday), though ongoing suspensions of the Dáil has thrown the timescale for the election of the Taoiseach and the announcement of the Cabinet into doubt.
The controversy relates to the proposals for some members of the Regional Independents Group, who are backing the Government, but not members of the new Government, to sit on the opposition benches.
The Mullingar native has publicly stated that he would like to remain in the Department of Enterprise and build on the work he has done since his appointment last April. It is being reported in the national press that if Minister of Justice Helen McEntee is given the enterprise portfolio, Minister Burke could be moved to the newly expanded Department of Communications, Culture and Sport.
Minister Burke hoped his “track record will be looked upon when the decisions are made”.
Minister Burke was appointed Minister for Enterprise last April. He feels that the department achieved a lot in a relatively short period of time and he would be happy to retain the portfolio.
Regarding the make-up of the new government, Minister Burke says new coalition should provide the stability needed to ensure it lasts five years.
“That’s what you need. The objective was to deliver a government for the people that would last five years, that would commit to five budgets so that we wouldn’t have constant speculation.
“Secondly there are so many potential shocks on the horizon between trade tensions and the uncertainty of the political landscape that you will need a government that can absorb a few shocks, that will come and will be challenging, be it by-elections or other events. You need that critical mass, and it delivers that.”
Minister Burke says that the new government will have a “progressive centrist approach” and “will bring a bit more common sense into the heart of politics”.
Meanwhile, Fianna Fáil Longford Westmeath TD Robert Troy says that incoming Taoiseach Micheál Martin is aware that he has sights on a return to the ministerial ranks.
In August 2022, Deputy Troy resigned as minister of state at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment after the news website The Ditch revealed that he had made errors while declaring his property interests.
A report by the Standards in Public Office Commission (SIPO) published last month found that the while the Fianna Fáil TD failed to comply with provisions of the Ethics Act, he had acted in good faith.
Deputy Tory says he has spoken to his party leader Mr Martin, who will swap his position as tánaiste with Taoiseach Simon Harris later today (Wednesday) when the Dáil returns, about his desire to serve as a minister in the new government.
“The party leader is aware of that ambition. When I stepped down, he didn’t ask me to step down and the report found that I always acted in good faith. There was no intention to conceal anything from SIPO, so from that perspective I’ve been exonerated and I’ve also been re-elected comfortably in the most recent election.
“I proved that I was an effective minister when I was in the last term and I would be hoping that Micheál Martin [would recognise that], but it’s outside my control.
“It is my ambition, but it’s not my choice, it’s his choice. Obviously we’ll have to wait and see whether he has me in mind for a role. If he doesn’t, so be it.”