One of my first recollections of Leo Varadkar is not political. In a now long-gone nightclub in Dublin in the mid-noughties, it was to our surprise that we realised that the energetic interloper in our dance floor circle, hands in the air, was none other than the newly elected TD for Dublin West. The no-longer-Taoiseach in waiting was in top form and well able to throw shapes. His ability to spring a surprise has not diminished since.
When the news first broke that the Taoiseach was suddenly about to resign, both as leader of the country and his party, it was easy to assume that a major scandal was about to break. It’s been a while since we had a juicy political story to gleefully dissect, but alas, it was far less exciting. Leo had simply had enough. Some cynicism remains, but at the time of writing, no great scandal appears to be emerging, and the hindsight observations of political correspondents suggest that the signs were there, particularly in Washington. Therefore, Leo has become rather an anomaly – one of the very few politicians who actually does know when it’s time to go. His timing, after the US visit and before the local elections, is probably as good as it could have been for the coalition.
Being a politician is a tough gig. Being a TD is really no walk in the park, despite what the social media snipes would have you believe. A minister, sometimes with several portfolios? That’s a lot. Having the buck for pretty much everything stopping with you? I don’t think there’s a salary or pension in the world that would make that appeal to most of us. If Leo felt that he had no more to give, you could hardly blame him. Between the relentless and oftentimes threatening abuse of politicians, the blindingly fast movement of politics in the digital area, the state of world politics and the general, everyday demands of this seven-day-a-week job, it is perhaps understandable that he felt he couldn’t sustain it any longer. Plenty among us wouldn’t last a week.
As for Leo’s legacy? Well, it’s a mixed bag. A Marmite Taoiseach, his popularity both as Taoiseach and party leader had been slipping for a long time. Bursting onto the scene in 2007, he pulled no punches with a cut at then Taoiseach Bertie Ahern - a trait that never really deserted him. His faux-pas and verbal diarrhoea got him into hot water more than once and belied his conservative ideologies (who could forget his suggestion that Tiny Tim should have just found a job, or his crass jibe about Monica Lewinsky on a recent visit to the US?)
Supporters will point to Leo’s solid management of Covid-19, his steady hand during the challenge of managing Brexit relations (no easy task given the calibre of politicians he was dealing with) and his oversight of an economic recovery to a point where we are at pretty much full employment. He will also be credited for leading Ireland through a period of social change that included the marriage equality referendum and the repeal of the Eighth Amendment. On paper, the latter looks good, but campaigners on the ground know that they are the ones who did the heavy lifting until Leo – initially opposed to both – decided it was politically expedient to support the campaigns. Leo’s neoliberalism reached its crescendo when he proclaimed that “welfare cheats cheat us all”, in a dubious bid to convince people to snitch on their neighbours.
For many, Leo will be remembered as the Taoiseach who presided over an unprecedented housing crisis and emergency that has affected every aspect of society from homelessness to tourism, the steady decline of public services including the Health Service in which he played his own role, a poorly managed immigration policy that is now bordering on catastrophic, the widening of the urban-rural divide and the destruction of our capital city to mention but a few.
As a person, he will primarily be remembered as a leader who really struggled to show empathy with anyone that might be less well off, or that might need support from the state – a socialist, he was not – and he lacked the warmth and natural social ability needed to make a really good leader. It’s quite telling that the first time we witnessed any really display of emotion from Leo was in relation to his own resignation. The history books will probably be kind, however, even if the truth is a little less so, and it will be interesting to see what Leo does next.
And where to now? The launch speed of Simon Harris’s juggernaut leadership campaign must surely have surprised even himself. Despite his well-documented media-friendly personality and social media superstar status, his own copybook is not without blots, and he will forever be remembered as the minister who threatened to penalise nurses for striking, oversaw the Children’s Hospital project spiral out of control and effectively deserted nursing homes during the Covid-19 crisis. It is abundantly clear that he has the appetite and the ambition to take on the big job. Time will tell just how long he gets to enjoy it, and whether he can address any of the problems left by his predecessor.
OPINION: Leo’s legacy is a very mixed bag
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0
27.03.2024
One of my first recollections of Leo Varadkar is not political. In a now long-gone nightclub in Dublin in the mid-noughties, it was to our surprise that we realised that the energetic interloper in our dance floor circle, hands in the air, was none other than the newly elected TD for Dublin West. The no-longer-Taoiseach in waiting was in top form and well able to throw shapes. His ability to spring a surprise has not diminished since.
When the news first broke that the Taoiseach was suddenly about to resign, both as leader of the country and his party, it was easy to assume that a major scandal was about to break. It’s been a while since we had a juicy political story to gleefully dissect, but alas, it was far less exciting. Leo had simply had enough. Some cynicism remains, but at the time of writing, no great scandal appears to be emerging, and the hindsight observations of political correspondents suggest that the signs were there, particularly in Washington. Therefore, Leo has become rather an anomaly – one of the very few politicians who actually does know when it’s time to go. His timing, after the US visit and before the local elections, is probably as good as it could have been for the coalition.
Being a politician is a tough gig. Being a TD is really........
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