The Taoiseach has maintained that the scandals that have surfaced during the election campaign have not put his party on the defensive, reports Breaking News.
Simon Harris, the head of Fine Gael, was questioned on whether the party’s momentum had been halted by the controversy surrounding senator John McGahon’s candidature and Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary’s remarks regarding teachers at a Fine Gael event.
At a Fine Gael candidate launch event at the beginning of the campaign, Mr. O’Leary came under fire for declaring that he would not employ teachers to “get things done,” reports Breaking News.
Rival parties have pointed out that the comment caused the assembled Fine Gael supporters to chuckle.
Other parties have also urged Mr. Harris to disassociate himself from Mr. McGahon, the candidate for the Co Louth election, in recent days.
In a criminal prosecution two years ago, Fine Gael senator Mr. McGahon was found not guilty of punching a man outside a bar in Dundalk. However, earlier this year, a High Court civil suit held him culpable and ordered him to pay damages, reports Breaking News.
Due to his involvement in the 2018 incident, he was deemed to be 65 percent culpable and forced to pay €39,000.
While video of the brawl has been making the rounds on social media, a Sunday newspaper published a picture of the complainant’s injuries.
During his Tuesday canvassing in County Roscommon, Mr. Harris was questioned about if the problems had motivated him, reports Breaking News.
“I don’t think that at all,” he replied.
“I’m really enjoying this campaign to be quite honest, (I am) getting a lot of energy from talking to people across the country and hearing people very responsive. And I say this very respectfully, but as I travel around the country… we hear people raising the issues that matter to them in their lives, in their community and their family. Issues around housing, issues around cost of living, a lot around cost of living… small businesses, farmers worried about their viability in terms of the future of the family farm, rural regeneration. So the real issues, the bread and butter, I suppose, issues of this election campaign, and I’m looking forward to continuing those conversations,” reports Breaking News.
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