According to Heather Humphreys, Minister for Social Protection, she gave her job as a TD her “absolute all,” but she also acknowledged that she is “getting older like everyone else,” reports RTE.
Ms. Humphreys stated that she gave “careful consideration” to her decision to not run in the next general election.
The former Fine Gael deputy leader stated in an interview with RTÉ’s This Week: “I’ve given this a lot of consideration, and the explanation is straightforward. I’ll be 65 next year and if I ran again I’d be nearly 70 by the end of the next Dáil term and I’m just not physically able to keep going for that long. I was first elected to the Dáil on the 27th of February 2011 and from that day to this, I’ve given this job my absolute all, and of course, that’s the only way you can do this job. It demands a lot. There’s no work-life balance in politics. It’s all-consuming now,” reports RTE.
“Not on the cards for me” is another way that Ms. Humphreys ruled herself out of the presidential campaign for next year.
For the same reason that she chose not to run in the upcoming general election, she stated that she is not contemplating it, reports RTE.
According to Taoiseach Simon Harris, Ms. Humphreys was a “trailblazer in Irish politics” who deserves praise.
“Unless I can give it 100%, I won’t do it. I’ll keep working of course, to the best of my ability, for the remainder of the government term. When the next government is formed and the new cabinet is appointed, that will mark the end of my time in public life. I’ve been at it now for 21 years and I do believe it’s time to take a step back. I have two beautiful little grandchildren, and I am looking forward to spending more time with them,” she added, reports RTE.
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