Party leaders to finalise Cabinet reshuffle in coming days

It was confirmed that the Green Party ministers - Eamon Ryan, Catherine Martin and Roderic O'Gorman - will remain in their departments

The only certainty outside Green Party ministers keeping their portfolios is that the roles of Taoiseach and Tánaiste will swap parties. File picture

Fine Gael is "keen" to keep hold of the Community and Rural Development portfolio, according to Tánaiste Leo Varadkar.

While Mr Varadkar would not be drawn further on the reshuffle, due to take place after the change in Taoiseach next Saturday, December 17, he did confirm that the Green Party ministers - Eamon Ryan, Catherine Martin and Roderic O'Gorman - will remain in their departments. 

Speaking at the launch of a €33m fund to support community centres in his Dublin West constituency, Mr Varadkar said that Eamon Ryan has asked for the Green Party to retain the Transport, Culture, and Children portfolios.

However, he said that the only certainty outside that is that the roles of Taoiseach and Tánaiste will swap parties, along with the exchange of the Finance and Public Expenditure portfolios.

"All things going to plan, there will be a new Cabinet formed on Saturday, December 17," Mr Varadkar said. "Obviously, the first people who will know who's in that and what positions they have, are the people themselves."

Mr Varadkar conceded that members of his parliamentary party are "keen" to keep the Community and Rural Development portfolio but said that there has been no discussion on the matter at the highest levels of government. "I can't tell you yet and it wouldn't be fair to colleagues to say now."

He said that a meeting with Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Mr Ryan will happen "before the 17th" as the changeover date gets closer. Sources have said that the Green Party ministers staying in place, as well as Mr Varadkar's commitments that Simon Coveney, Heather Humphreys and Paschal Donohoe will remain in Cabinet, mean that the reshuffle will see ministers swapping roles but is "unlikely to have many surprises".

On housing, the Tánaiste said that if targets are missed in 2024 and 2025, as has been warned by some, "the situation will get worse not better, and that’s not an acceptable outcome for me or anyone in government". He said that this meant that the Government must "consider every option".

“There have been periods in the last couple of years where we thought we were turning the corner in the housing crisis, and for various reasons that didn’t happen, and we need to make sure that we redouble our efforts over the next year or two and get on top of this burning political, social and economic issue.”

Mr Varadkar and Ms Humphreys were speaking at Hartstown Community Centre in Blanchardstown where they were launching a €33 million fund which will benefit 287 community centres across Ireland. 

Hartstown had been threatened with closure in recent years, but following local campaigning, is in the process of being taken over by Fingal County Council and will receive €300,000 of the fund to undergo a major renovation. Ms Humphreys said that the community centre is "the heart of the community, so it’s about upgrading the facilities".