Leo Varadkar has announced he is stepping down as Taoiseach and leader of Fine Gael.
It comes less than a fortnight after the Government inflicted some of the heaviest defeats in the history of the state in the referendums and family and care and one day after Galway East Deputy Ciaran Cannon announced he would be the tenth member of the party not to seek re-election.
Mr. Varadkar assumed the office of Taoiseach in June of 2017 and will continue to represent the Dublin West Constituency as a TD, with a new leader expected to take office after the Easter Break.
In an emotional speech at Government Buildings in the past hour, he outlined the moments he’s most proud of while in office, as well as the areas where he says the Government has been “less successful.”
His party colleague Ennistymon Fine Gael Senator Martin Conway has been speaking with me in the past few moments about the announcement.
You can listen to the full interview here:
He’s confident the Government will still last its full term.
