Scully tipped for Fine Gael Limerick East line up

THE Fine Gael national executive is expected, later this week, to add Cllr Diarmuid Scully to the party’s Limerick East line up for the upcoming general election.

Former party leader Deputy Michael Noonan and Cllr Kieran O’Donnell have already been selected, at convention, to fight the five-seater.

A group from headquarters travel to Limerick today for talks on a three-candidate strategy.

Speculation centres on former mayor of Limerick, Cllr Scully, being strongly tipped to be added to the ticket.

Cllr Scully had talks in recent weeks with the party’s general-secretary Tom Curran, national director of elections Deputy Phil Hogan and party strategist Frank Flannery, who will be in Limerick today for further talks with the party officer board in the constituency.

Cllr Scully has mended his fences with the party, having lost the Fine Gael whip in 2004 when he broke ranks and took the mayoralty in a vote in which he faced the agreed Fine Gael nominee Cllr Maria Byrne.

After the intervention of party headquarters last year, he regained the party whip position on the council.

Fine Gael strategists feel the three candidate strategy would assist the party win a second seat in Limerick East. The main opposition party insist the seat of Minister of State, Tim O’Malley was vulnerable.