Varadkar set to be elected Irish PM under rotation deal

AFP / Paul Faith

Leo Varadkar is set to be elected Irish prime minister for the second time on Saturday, taking over from Micheál Martin under a novel rotation agreement struck between their two parties - once sworn rivals - in a 2020 coalition deal.

Martin resigned on Saturday ahead of a vote in parliament to elect Varadkar, who was prime minister from 2017 to 2020. Martin will become deputy prime minister until a scheduled 2025 election and is also expected to be appointed foreign minister.

The 2020 coalition deal - which also included the smaller Green Party - for the first time united Martin's Fianna Fail and Varadkar's Fine Gael, Ireland's dominant centre-right parties and have led every government since independence a century ago.

"This morning, I visited the president and, pursuant to the relevant provisions of Bunreacht na hÉireann (Constitution of Ireland), I have tendered my resignation from the office of Taoiseach (prime minister)," Martin told parliament.

"It is both a privilege and a responsibility to serve as head of government in a free and democratic republic. I have been deeply conscious of this every day I have held the office of Taoiseach."

Varadkar will again face a years-long housing crisis that cost him a full second term in office and has made the left-wing Sinn Fein clear favourite to come out on top at the next election with a consistently wide lead in opinion polls.

More from International news

  • US prosecutors to seek death penalty for Luigi Mangione

    U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi directed federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty for Luigi Mangione, the man accused of shooting and killing the CEO of UnitedHealth Group's insurance division Brian Thompson in New York last year.

  • UN warns window to find Myanmar quake survivors closing

    Aid groups in Myanmar on Tuesday described scenes of devastation and desperation after an earthquake that killed more than 2,700 people, stressing an urgent need for food, water and shelter and warning the window to find survivors was fast closing.

  • Trump administration begins mass layoffs at health agencies

    The Trump administration has fired staff at U.S. health agencies including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Food and Drug Administration and National Institutes of Health, as it embarked on its plan to cut 10,000 health jobs, according to sources familiar with the situation and a health official.

  • Israel says it 'eliminated' Hezbollah operative in Beirut strike

    The Israeli military said it killed a Hezbollah operative in an airstrike on Beirut's southern suburbs early on Tuesday, while three other people were reported killed and seven injured, further testing a shaky four-month ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.

News