Attendance at US ambassador's reception for Donald Trump up to individual politicians, Tánaiste says

Simon Harris said: 'It's entirely up to people themselves to make those decisions as to whether they wish to be there or not.'

Tánaiste Simon Harris has said it is up to individual politicians whether they attend a reception for US president Donald Trump held by the US ambassador.

It comes as the Government faces walking a political tightrope as president Trump arrives in Dublin tomorrow morning for a whistlestop visit, including a visit to President Catherine Connolly, and a meeting with Taoiseach Micheál Martin in Farmleigh.

Several politicians have expressed reservations about attending the event, with senior ministers admitting they were uncomfortable about the invitation.

Invites were sent to TDs by the US Embassy in Ireland on Wednesday evening, asking them to the event held by US ambassador Edward Walsh in Deerfield Residence in the Phoenix Park. They were informed that it was expected to start between 6am and 8am.

When asked if he can understand politicians’ reservations about attending the event to hear Mr Trump speak, Mr Harris said there is “fluidity” about who will or will not be invited.

“It's entirely up to people themselves to make those decisions as to whether they wish to be there or not,” the Tánaiste said.

“Obviously, I'll be there carrying out my duties as a member of the Government. As the deputy head of the Government, I think it's important that we keep our bilateral relations with the United States going.

“It's a relationship that transcends any individual person, and it's one that's a very valuable economic relationship. There isn't a county in Ireland that isn't in some way seeing the benefits of foreign direct investment, and there isn't a state in the United States of America that doesn't have an Irish-owned company creating jobs.”

Several ministers admitted that they are uncomfortable about going to the event. Many Government TDs said that they were not going to attend Deerfield as they do not support many of the US president’s positions and policies.

Some were weighing up whether they should attend so that they will be able to reflect on the event in years to come.

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At the Fine Gael think-in in Gorey, ministers attending the first press conference of the day were non-committal about whether they would attend the event. Health minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, education minister Hildegarde Naughton, and enterprise minister Peter Burke all noted that the arrangements were in flux.

However, by the time the second doorstep of the day was held, the three ministers addressing the media all confirmed that they would be attending.

Foreign affairs minister Helen McEntee said it was “really important that now, more than ever, we work on the relationship between the US and Ireland”.

“It is a mutually beneficial relationship from an economic perspective, but in so many different ways,” she said.

“We, through our own companies, create hundreds of thousands of jobs in the US. As we have many jobs that are dependent on companies here, it's important that we work on and that we invest in that relationship, particularly at a time when we perhaps don't always agree on every policy matter.”

When asked about the security surrounding the visit, Ms McEntee said that while “of course there are risks”, there has been a “significant security operation underway since the start of the [European] presidency”.

Agriculture minister Martin Heydon and junior disabilities minister Emer Higgins also confirmed they will attend the Deerfield residency event.

Sinn Féin, Labour, Social Democrats, the Green Party, and People Before Profit have all said that they will be protesting the visit.

Mr Trump's arrival in Dublin is expected to cause huge traffic restrictions throughout the city. He will then travel to Doonbeg in Clare, for the Irish Open.

• Louise Burne, political correspondent