Lenihan has ‘no appetite’ to change jobs

BRIAN LENIHAN spoke confidently about his health last night as he said he had “no appetite” to change jobs in the looming reshuffle.

In his first comments on the situation since it was revealed he was battling cancer in early January, the Finance Minister said his position remained the same.

The upbeat assessment will be seen as a boost to Brian Cowen as he prepares what is likely to be a radical restructuring of Government departments in which Mr Lenihan’s role will be key.

When asked about the appetite at Cabinet for a reshuffle, Mr Lenihan joked: “Well, it’s not our appetite” before giving a positive assessment of his health.

“I made it very clear last January what my position was. I made a full public disclosure of my position, and the position has not changed since then,” he said following weeks of treatment.

The comments came as Mr Cowen gave the strongest indication yet he is reviewing how Government departments are set out ahead of a reshuffle and re-organisation.

Mr Cowen’s plans may include the creation of three ministerial roles to run public service reform, job creation and training, and possibly the creation of a department of economic planning, which could take over some areas under the control of Tánaiste Mary Coughlan at Employment and Enterprise Department.

Ms Coughlan was embroiled in another controversy in the Dáil as she accused Fine Gael of “sexism” in the way it treated her, as speculation mounted she would be removed from her post in the reshuffle.

Ms Coughlan made the sexism allegation against Fine Gael justice spokesman, Charlie Flanagan, after he told TDs a company law Bill going through the Dáil was “too big” for her to handle.

The Tánaiste denounced the remark, stating: “If the deputy wishes to throw a condescending, sexist remark across the House that is fine – it is very much the calibre of Deputy Flanagan.”

A number of Fianna Fáil backbenchers expect Ms Coughlan to be removed from her economic post. Her keeping the Tánaiste’s role while heading a new department of Education and Gaeltacht Affairs is thought to be one of the options being considered.

Speculation that Arts and Tourism Minister Martin Cullen, who suffers from severe back pain, may stand down due to health reasons has also gained currency.

The future of a standalone Gaeltacht Department, and the Arts, Sports and Tourism Department is under threat after the McCarthy Report called for both posts to be scrapped.

Mr Cowen gave no clues as to the timing or scale of the shake-up which he must bring in soon to replace former defence minister Willie O’Dea and his ex-Green junior agriculture minister Trevor Sargent.

FF backbencher Mattie McGrath branded the current departmental set-up “dysfunctional” and called for a major overhaul.

One benefit of creating a new department of economic planning would be to lighten the workload on Mr Lenihan.

Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny dismissed reshuffle talk as a “distraction”.

“The Government should shuffle off the stage as they have lost the moral authority to lead and their integrity is in shreds,” he said.

Meanwhile, former food minister Mr Sargent has revealed he is donating his €47,000 pay-off package to the Society of Saint Vincent De Paul.