By Cate McCurry and Gráinne Ní Aodha, PA
The three coalition party leaders have agreed to hold an election in 2024 following a lengthy meeting on Monday evening.
Taoiseach Simon Harris, Tanáiste Micheál Martin and Children’s Minister Roderic O’Gorman held their weekly leaders' meeting during which the election date was discussed.
A Government spokesperson said: “The three party leaders have agreed the general election will take place in 2024.
“The three leaders have agreed the passage of the Finance Bill is the priority for the Government.
“The committee stage of the Bill will commence on November 5th.”
Earlier on Monday, Fine Gael leader Mr Harris rejected assertions that Green Party leader Mr O’Gorman “went behind his back” by putting forward a suggested election date of November 29th.
Although a poll must be held before March 22nd, 2025, it has long been suspected that Mr Harris could call an election after Budget 2025 was announced on October 1st.
Positive poll results for Fine Gael and controversies facing Sinn Féin have added fuel to those rumours.
Asked about Mr O’Gorman’s comments on Friday, Mr Harris said: “It was certainly very upfront, and I have no difficulty with that. People are absolutely entitled to give their opinion, and most importantly, coalition leaders are absolutely entitled to their opinion and their view.
“The Government has worked cohesively, and what I define as evidence of that is the fact that a Government of three parties has managed to deliver five Budgets, has managed to find a Programme for Government that we could all pull together.
“Of course, we have different areas of emphasis and different policies, and that’s very healthy, but we have a joint Programme for Government, which I’m really proud of, actually, that we’ve managed to work our way through together over the last number of years.
“Even as things change through the leaders, Mr O’Gorman in his role and myself in my role, we’ve still managed to keep the show on the road in terms of that policy agenda.
“There’s no great mystery in relation to this. Let me try to be helpful… I mean, there’s going to be a general election this year, and the Government is going to conclude its work. It’s going to do that in an orderly manner.”
The Taoiseach said he wants to see some key pieces of outstanding legislation passed before he seeks the dissolution of the Dáil, and also wants his Government to set in place new house-building targets for 2025.
Last week, Mr Martin said that once they could confirm the Finance Bill could be passed before an election is held, he would agree to a pre-Christmas election date.
He added: “I do agree with Minister O’Gorman on the need to actually provide a sense of clarity on this. There’s no issue with that at all.
“The specific date, without being in any way prickly about it, is obviously a matter for me under the Constitution, and I take that seriously.”
Asked if he feels under pressure to hold the election on November 29th, Mr Harris said: “Pressure is for tyres, there’s lots of pressure in politics.
“I certainly didn’t feel that at all. I think I’ve been quite clear in my public commentary for many weeks now, as have others, in relation to finishing the work that is under way, that’s important.
“I’m not going to get into the speculation of the day of the election, because obviously you will all start narrowing it down even further, and I have to keep some small element of surprise for you in the days ahead.”
Mr Harris said his party will contest the election as a standalone political party, and will not go into the election with a transfer pact among the coalition parties.
“But, having said that, the public don’t need or wish their politicians to tell them what to do with their votes, particularly their second, third and fourth preference. That is a matter for the people,” he added.
“But as night follows day, it is entirely possible, if not probable, that if people think this Government’s doing a good job, they may wish to vote in that manner. That is for them to decide.
“I think this Government has worked well together. We are three different parties. It’s been built on mutual respect. It’s been built on policy.”
Mr O’Gorman said: “On Friday, I gave a view as the Green Party leader as to what I thought would be a good date.
“As the leader of my party, I reserve the right to uphold the view on behalf of my party, and I was expressing that in terms of questions about certainty that I’ve been hearing as I’ve been on the doors in recent weeks.
“I think that that potential date, should it be the one, allows us to undertake the work on the Finance Bill pieces this week, hate crime legislation, maternity protection leave, allowing women who get sick during their maternity leave to defer their leave – important pieces of legislation like that – and allows us to get them finished.”
Minister for Finance Jack Chambers said it is clear the election will happen before Christmas.
Mr Chambers said he is prepared to bring the Finance Bill forward to allow for an election this year.
“That will require me to change the sequencing of the Finance Bill, from November 5th so it is synchronised with the election date, and I am open and prepared to do that to make sure all the measures we have set out in the Budget 2025 are enacted,” he said on Monday.
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