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- SPORT
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FG punishes elections chief over Sinn Féin gaffe
By Conor Ryan and Mary Regan
FRANK FLANNERY will not be reappointed as director of elections for Fine Gael for the next election.
The party’s director of organisation had made controversial statements in the week before last Friday’s election saying it was willing to go into coalition with Sinn Féin.Party leader Enda Kenny said Mr Flannery still has a role to play within the party. He said Mr Flannery remained his good friend and he still had a “very responsible role to play within the party”.
Mr Flannery had been the director of elections last week and had led the party to it most successful result ever. However, his comments in the last week of the campaign embroiled Mr Kenny in controversy and it was seen to damage the party’s image, particularly among its more affluent supporters.
A party spokesman said in the future Mr Kenny preferred a politician to act as director of elections. This is how Fianna Fáil had organised itself with Noel Dempsey in the director of elections role.
Mr Flannery will retain his director of organisation title within the party.
While there had been some misgivings among party members about Mr Flannery’s comments last week, he was still considered one of the most politically talented people available to Fine Gael.
Mr Kenny informed his parliamentary party of his decision and confirmed Mr Flannery was not being sacked.
Meanwhile, Brian Cowen’s government was granted some breathing space from opposition calls for a general election after comfortably winning last night’s Dáil motion of confidence in his leadership.
Potential dissidents rallied behind the Taoiseach to pass the motion by a majority of 85 to 79.
The vote came after the Taoiseach told the Dáil that taxpayers faced exposure of up to €64bn if the State failed to inject funds into Anglo Irish Bank.
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