White seen as a safe pair of hands

Alex White’s legal and media experience should prove beneficial in his new portfolio in Health, writes Juno McEnroe

ALEX WHITE’S elevation to the role of junior minister will leave Labour with a safe pair of hands in health, especially as the lawyer is viewed as one of Eamon Gilmore’s favourites.

The first-time Dublin TD, who grew up in Marino, north Dublin, carries the respect of both backbenchers and Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore. Having practised as a barrister and specialised in employment law until now, he had been tipped as getting a ministerial position even when the Coalition was only being formed last year, after he gained a seat in Dublin South.