Out Former Irish Prime Minister Returns To Office For Second Term
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Leo Varadkar has returned to the office of Taoiseach to begin his second term as Irish Prime Minister under the country’s three-party governing coalition.
The Fine Gael leader was Tánaiste (deputy prime minister) while Fianna Fail’s Martin was appointed for the first two-and-a-half years. This term marks both leaders swapping their roles.
Varadkar served as prime minister between 2017 and 2020 and became the country’s youngest-ever leader at 43. He was also named Ireland’s first openly gay prime minister.
Lawmakers voted to approve Varadkar’s nomination to replace Martin during a special sitting of Irish Parliament in the lower house.
Following the 2020 general election in Ireland, the two largest political forces, the centre-right Fine Gael and Fianna Fail, agreed on a three-way coalition with the smaller Green Party.
The two rival parties had not participated in the same government since independence in 1922. Under their coalition agreement, struck four months after the election, Fine Gael and Fianna Fail agreed to share the role of Taoiseach.
During the special sitting in the lower house of the Irish parliament, Varadkar praised Martin for providing “reassurance and hope in difficult times.”
“I accept this nomination with humility and resolve and a burning desire,” he said, emphasising his vision “to provide new hope and new opportunities for all our citizens.”
Varadkar Publicly Comes Out
Prior to Ireland’s referendum legalising same-sex marriage, Varadkar came out publicly in 2015 during an interview on national radio.
His partner, Dr Matthew Barrett is a cardiologist and the pair have been together since 2015. The couple recently bought a house together in Dublin 8.
At the time Varadkar spoke to Radio Telefis Eireann (RTE), stating that his sexual orientation was not something he intentionally kept hidden, “I am a gay man, it’s not a secret, but not something that everyone would necessarily know.”
“It’s not something that defines me…. It’s part of my character.”
During the pandemic, Varadkar re-registered as a doctor, returning to work in the medical industry once a week while maintaining leadership of the country.
Varadkar declared that his term would begin by focusing on “providing hope and housing, economic opportunity and a fair start for all.”
“Ireland has never been a failed state and it is grotesque and dishonest to claim that we are, or we were. But we are failing some of our citizens, and it is essential to our success as a country that we put this right.
“I want to work with all parties in this house and in Northern Ireland, as well as with the British government and our partners in the European Union, to make progress on the protocol and restore the institutions of the agreement”, he said.
