The Taoiseach Leo Varadkar released an email to Fine Gael supporters and anyone who has signed up to the Fine Gael newsletter.
In it, he goes into detail as to how he’ll tackle Brexit along with health, housing and the EU.
He said it was a privilege to lead the country and thanked people for putting their trust in him.
Read the full letter below, tell us your thoughts in the Facebook post and share this with your friends:
“Hello ,
This morning I informed the cabinet that I would ask the President to dissolve the 32nd Dáil and to hold an election on Saturday, February 8th.
I have always said that the election should happen at the best time for the country.
Now is that time.
We have a deal on Brexit that ensures no hard border, citizens’ rights will protected and the Common Travel Area will remain in place. The Northern Ireland Assembly and Executive have reconvened.
However, Brexit is not done yet. It’s only half-time.
The next step is to negotiate a free trade agreement between the EU, including Ireland, and the United Kingdom that protects our jobs, our businesses, our rural communities, and our economy.
The capacity to do everything else that needs to be done — health, housing, climate action, tax reform — depends on achieving this outcome. And, it has to be done by the end of the year.
There is a window of opportunity to hold a General Election and to have a new Government in place before the next European Council meeting in March with a strong mandate to focus on these negotiations into the summer and autumn.
It has been a privilege to lead this country as your Taoiseach for the last two and half years. Thank you for that honour and your trust in me.
Our economy has never been stronger. There are more people at work than ever before, incomes are rising, poverty is falling and the public finances are in back in order.
We’ve made good progress, but I know it’s not enough.
I want us to do much more.
Now I seek a fresh mandate so we can continue to build a better future. A future we can all look forward to.
We have the team. We have the track record. We have the plans.
To read my full speech and to view some of those plans, please go to: finegael.ie
Thank you.
Leo
Leo Varadkar
Taoiseach and Leader of Fine Gael”