Ciara Conway enters the race for deputy leadership role
She announced her decision ahead of today’s 12pm deadline for nominations, promising to be the link between the party’s grassroots members and backbench TDs, and senior people at cabinet.
She is up against two junior ministers — North Tipperary’s Alan Kelly and Cork East’s Seán Sherlock — and Michael McCarthy, chairman of the Oireachtas Environment Committee.
Despite her slim chances, she insists she is not running to position herself for a promotion from the backbenches.
“I don’t seek the position of deputy leader to achieve executive power,” she said. “If I was lucky enough to be elected I would not accept any ministerial position.
“I want to be able to influence the direction of the party, to represent the values and the voice of the membership honestly, and without that being compromised by the vested interests of cabinet or a ministerial position.”
While the next Labour leader should be at cabinet, “there is a strong need for someone who is willing to serve without office”, according to Ms Conway “who would be an integral part of the leadership but in constant connection with the organisation at large”.
She said the party needs a deputy leader “to represent daily concerns and anxieties” of members, “someone to challenge our ministers — maybe even occasionally to make our ministers and our partners uncomfortable”.
She said Labour has exercised “considerable influence” when not in power, including the election of Mary Robinson as president, the role of Dick Spring in opposition from 1989 to 1992 and “the extraordinarily effective opposition led by Eamon Gilmore prior to 2011”.
Ms Conway was one of eight parliamentary party members who signed a no-confidence motion in Mr Gilmore before he announced his resignation last Monday. She said she stands over that decision, despite strong criticism from senior members of the party that the group acted prematurely and denied Mr Gilmore the space he needed to make his decision.
“I believe now we have to look to the future and that is unequivocally what I have heard from the membership in recent days; that as a new and young member of Dáil Eireann they want me to put my name forward so I could show the true values of the Labour Party,” said Ms Conway.
Kerry North TD Arthur Spring has been considering whether to enter the race for the leadership but is now unlikely to do.
Members will have a chance to vote before a new leader is chosen to replace Mr Gilmore on July 4.
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