Ireland's youngest Taoiseach juggles geography and gender as he assembles his first Cabinet

Simon Harris was confirmed as Fine Gael's new leader late last month after Leo Varadkar's shock resignation, and looks set to succeed him as Taoiseach on Tuesday. Picture: Eamon Ward/PA

Simon Harris will become the youngest Taoiseach in history on Tuesday, vowing to place a strong emphasis on law and order, business supports, and families.

Junior minister Peter Burke is expected to become a senior minister when Mr Harris announces his Cabinet, while Neale Richmond, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, Patrick O’Donovan, and Hildegarde Naughton are all in line for changes of position.

Mr Harris is also set to announce plans in the coming week for a change of threshold on employers’ PRSI, designed to offset the impact of the increase in the minimum wage. 

The move is expected to cost around €60m. The new Taoiseach is also expected to delay the implementation of plans to raise the number of statutory sick days an employee is entitled to. That number is currently five, but is due to rise to seven next January and then rise further to 10 days in 2026.

Mr Harris will be elected by the Dáil at around lunchtime and will be nominated by Social Protection Minister Heather Humphreys, before being officially appointed by President Michael D Higgins following the resignation of Leo Varadkar.

He will then set about the task of appointing a Cabinet.

Varadkar's and Coveney's replacements 

With Mr Varadkar's and Enterprise Minister Simon Coveney’s positions to be vacant, Mr Harris will name replacements from the Fine Gael end of the coalition, with “geography and gender” to be major considerations.

Mr Burke will second Mr Harris, with many taking this as a sign that he is a “shoo-in” for a senior Cabinet spot.

Mr Burke’s current position as minister for European affairs will be filled today, Tuesday, and the role will be broadened slightly to include the communication of issues on EU migration policies and how they impact Ireland domestically.

Geography and gender

Mr Richmond, Ms Carroll MacNeill, Mr O’Donovan, and chief whip Hildegarde Naughton all have a chance to be given the last Cabinet place. The view is that promotion for Ms Naughton to the further education portfolio, which Mr Harris will vacate, is possible, with Ms Carroll MacNeill moving to the chief whip’s role.

This would mean that Fine Gael would have more women than men at Cabinet.

It would also ensure that Connacht is represented at Cabinet, but would leave Fine Gael without a Munster-based minister at the top table.

A Munster-based minister

Patrick O’Donovan, the minister of state for the Office of Public Works, is seen as another who could be given either a senior ministry or the chief whip’s role.

Multiple Fine Gael sources said it is unlikely that Justice Minister Helen McEntee  will be moved, with one saying that her role is complex and any newcomer would have just months to get to grips with it.

Three junior ministries to fill

Mr Harris would then have three roles to fill at junior minister level: Public health, special education, and European affairs.

He is set to fill these positions tomorrow, with a senior source saying this had been brought forward because he “wants to get to work”.

“He doesn’t want a week of guess who,” a source said.

Then further education minister Simon Harris meeting members of Dáil na nÓg, Ireland’s national youth parliament, at Leinster House last month. Picture: Maxwell’s

Parliamentary party chairman and Mayo TD Alan Dillon, Dublin Mid-West TD Emer Higgins, and Cork North-Central’s Colm Burke are the names in contention.

One TD who has not been named in ongoing speculation is Alan Farrell, who was first elected to the Dáil in 2011. The Dublin Fingal TD has never served as a minister, with some party sources indicating that he could step down if not added to the junior benches tomorrow.

Speaking after he formally tendered his resignation to the President, Mr Varadkar said that he has received several “interesting” job offers in recent weeks. However, he has not made any decision to step down as a TD.

“Definitely a few interesting offers have come my way, which I’ll be able to explore over the summer period when I get a chance to take a break,” he said.