Tag Archives: Alan Kelly

Alan Kelly resigns as Labour Party leader last night

This morning.

Further to last night’s surprise resignation of Alan Kelly as leader of the Labour Party.

Via Irish Times:

Kelly’s two-year term as leader of the party was brought to an abrupt end on Tuesday, when a delegation of three members visited him to deliver a blunt message: your time is up.

The knife was ultimately twisted by three members of the parliamentary party seen as particularly close to him: Dublin Fingal TD Duncan Smith, who Kelly made director of elections for the successful Dublin Bay South byelection, and the party’s health spokesman; Cork East TD Seán Sherlock, who backed him for the leadership over Aodhán Ó Ríordáin in 2020; and Senator Mark Wall, a staunch backer of Kelly through and through.

but the immediate trigger, sources said, was unhappiness among members over the manner of an appointment made to a backroom position within the party.

Sources said the decision was made to approach Kelly on Monday, and deliver the verdict of his colleagues to him. However, it wasn’t until Tuesday that Smith, Wall and Sherlock went to him.

Hmm.

Anyone?

Meanwhile.

Above from left: Duncan Smith, Ivana Bacik, Ged Nash, Alan Kelly and Aodhan O Riordan in Buswells, Dublin, for the launch of Labour’s Alternative Budget in January

This afternoon.

Paddy Power odds on the next Labour leader:

Ivana Bacik. 1/10

Ged Nash 9/1

Duncan Smith 10/1

Sean Sherlock. 16/1

Aodhan O Riordain. 20/1

Brendan Howlin. 20/1

Kelly lost the support of party colleagues (Jack Horgan Jones, irish Times)

RollingNews

Last night: The Power Wears Off

Tonight

Leinster House, Dublin 2.

Meanwhile..

Earlier…

Labour Party Leader Alan Kelly with Labour TD for Fingal, Duncan Smith (in background)

Update: Alan Kelly will make a statement about his political future at 7pm this evening at Leinster House.

Earlier…

This evening.

Sources have confirmed there had been criticism of Mr Kelly’s leadership style as the party continues to stall in the polls.

One representative said that Mr Kelly’s plan to improve the party would involve him “travelling around the country, pressing the flesh”.

Another source said that issues had come to a head in last week’s parliamentary party when Mr Kelly faced serious criticism from the representatives present, with one TD saying that they ultimately felt that the decision on Mr Kelly’s future would lie with Dublin Fingal TD Duncan Smith.

If Duncan says he has to go, he has to go,” they said.

Anyone?

Alan Kelly’s leadership of Labour Party in doubt after months of internal strife (Irish Examiner)

Leah Farrel/RollingNews

This morning/afternoon.

More as we get it.

Also: FIGHT!

Update:

Escalating.

This afternoon.

Buswell’s Hotel, Dublin 2

Labour Party leader Alan Kelly (left) and TD Ged Nash at the launch of Labour’s Alternative Budget 2022.

Meanwhile…

The Labour Party leader Alan Kelly has suggested the rental platform Airbnb needs regulation – but only in urban areas.

Mr Kelly, whose constituency is Tipperary, has a property which is rented out in a rural area.

He told Pat Kenny this is used as a connection for his family.

My wife is from down there, so it’s a connection down there for her and her family.

“I’ve an issue with Airbnb in urban areas as opposed to rural areas – particularly in areas… where that house is, it’s a very small population area.”

High on power, that lad.

Alan Kelly On The Future Of The Labour Party (Newstalk)

RollingNews

Ivana Bacik and Alan Kelly

Anyone?

Meanwhile…

FIGHT!

RollingNews


Last night.

RDS count centre, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4

Tanaiste Leo Varadkar greets Labour’s Ivana Bacik and party leader Alan Kelly following Labour’s victory in the Dublin Bay South by-election.

Earlier…


This evening.

RDS count centre, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4.

Labour Senator and Dublin Bay South by-election candidate Ivana Bacik (top right) with her party leader Alan Kelly (top left). Ms Bacik is favourite to take the seat left vacant by Fine Gael’s Eoghan Murphy.

Earlier…

This afternoon.

With 100% of the boxes tallied, the indications are that Ms Bacik is on 30% ahead of Fine Gael’s James Geoghegan on 26%, with Lynn Boylan of Sinn Féin on nearly 16%.

Tallies, which are not official counts and come with a strong health warning, suggest that Claire Byrne of the Green Party is on just under 8%, with Fianna Fáil’s Deirdre Conroy under 5% and Independent Mannix Flynn on 3%.

Bacik on course to top the poll in Dublin Bay South (RTÉ)

Earlier: Meanwhile, In The RDS

Meanwhile…

This afternoon.

RDS count centre, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4.

Sinn Fein candidate Lynn Boylan (right) with party president Mary Lou McDonald and constituency neighbouring TD Chris Andrews.

RollingNews

This morning.

Dail Eireann at the Convention Centre.

Labour Party Leader Alan Kelly and the Minister for Health, Stephen Donnelly, clash over vaccine roll-out figures.

Minister Donnelly had said “slightly less than a million doses” of Covid vaccines will arrive in the month of April.

However, Sinn Féin’s Health Spokesperson, David Cullinane said Mr Donnelly told a meeting of the Fianna Fáil parliamentary party meeting last night that the figure he received for April was 860,000.

Donnelly criticised after Covid vaccine arrivals are revised downwards (RTÉ)

This afternoon.

He’s really angry.

Labour leader Alan Kelly said mandatory hotel quarantine needs to be introduced immediately.

Speaking on RTÉ’s News at One, he said it is not good enough that it will be a number of weeks for the legislation that is being brought in to become operational.

Mr Kelly said that “we’ve locked up our people three times to stay within 5km of their homes, the choice into the future is do we continue to do that or do we quarantine people coming in”.

Meanwhile….

The Government is seeking to increase fines for non-essential international travel from €500 to €2,000.

Speaking in the Dáil, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said that around 60% of international travellers arriving into Ireland are returning Irish holiday makers.

He told Labour’s Duncan Smith that “there is a sense that €500 is not a sufficient disincentive to travel abroad“.

Plans to increase international travel fine to €2,000 (RTÉ)

Earlier: A Voice In The Wilderness

Labour Party leader Alan Kelly

This morning.

Labour Party leader Alan Kelly.

He’s had enough of mild-mannered suppression.

So macho.

Previously: Must. Have. Power

RollingNews

Meanwhile…

Good times.

A photo obtained by The Irish Independent shows the Labour Party boss unmasked on the Luas

This morning.

Via Irish Independent:

Labour leader Alan Kelly has apologised after the emergence of a picture of him not wearing a face mask while travelling on the Luas.

Independent.ie has obtained a picture of the Tipperary TD travelling on the Luas Green Line on Tuesday night. Mr Kelly is seen in the picture not wearing a face mask or covering.

The Labour leader apologised on Wednesday morning and said he was distracted while watching Manchester United’s Champions League encounter against RB Leipzig.

…The Tipperary TD has been to the forefront of campaigning on various issues around Covid-19 and in recent weeks has been challenging the Government on its plans to roll out a vaccine, including calling for a Vaccine Minister.

‘I was distracted watching Man United’ – Labour leader Alan Kelly apologises for not wearing mask on public transport (Independent.ie)