​TUV: Next Irish PM ‘needs to change approach’ on Northern Ireland

The Further and Higher Education minister announced his candidature on Thursday night after receiving a series of endorsements from within the Fine Gael parliamentary party and after a number of senior colleagues said they did not intend to stand.

A TUV spokesperson said: “The issue of who becomes Prime Minister of the Republic is obviously a matter for them.

“It would be a welcome change of approach if Dublin took a similar view of the internal affairs of NI and left them to our own elected representatives and sovereign government.

“Whoever replaces Varadkar it offers Unionists an opportunity to rediscover some backbone and tell Dublin to mind its own business should it insist in interfering with our affairs as was the case with the outgoing Prime Minister.”

Leo Varadkar had a poor relationship with unionists – largely because of his handling of Brexit, which was seen by many as too nationalist.

An arch proponent of the NI protocol – and the subsequent Irish Sea border – Mr Varadkar later said he regretted that it was imposed on Northern Ireland without the consent of both communities.

His likely successor Mr Harris described the last week as a “whirlwind” and said he is “overwhelmed and honoured” by the level of support he has secured for his Fine Gael leadership bid.Mr Harris addressed the media on Friday morning after attending a breakfast meeting with Fine Gael election candidates alongside Justice Minister Helen McEntee in Co Meath.“I am overwhelmed and honoured by the level of support that I’ve received from so many colleagues, including Helen, over the last number of hours, whether they were ministers, ministers of state, TDs, senators, MEPs, councillors, council candidates, grassroots members,” he said.“To each and every one of them I want to thank them, I am humbled, and my commitment to them and my commitment to the people of this country, if given the honour of serving, is that I will give this my all and I will work day and night.“I believe politics is about delivery. It’s about people. Sometimes politics in Ireland has gone a bit too presidential, a bit too personal.

“Politics is about actually getting things done for people. In many ways, I’m an accidental politician. I ended up in politics when my brother was born with autism and I stood as a moody teenager, and started campaigning in Wicklow, saying there has to be a better way of providing educational supports for people with autism.“I know how politics can deliver for people and, if given the honour of serving, I want to take that can-do approach to getting things done, to renewing our party, to injecting a level of energy and, to anybody who thinks this party is tired, to anyone who thinks this party lacks energy, you ain’t seen nothing yet.”He stopped short of ruling out a general election this year but insisted such a poll was not his priority