Daniel McConnell: Varadkar will decide Simon Coveney's fate

In this three-way coalition, were Micheál Martin to sack Mr Coveney, a Fine Gael minister, it would mark the end of the coalition and spark a general election, unless Leo Varadkar gave his okay

Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney following his appearance before the Foreign Affairs Committee on Tuesday over the appointment of Katherine Zappone as UN special envoy. Picture: Gareth Chaney/Collins

Simon Coveney has humbly argued that the Katherine Zappone appointment was not merely a sweet deal for a friend of Fine Gael, but any reasonable reading of the evidence points to the opposite conclusion.

Mr Coveney again appeared before the Oireachtas Foreign Affairs Committee, saying his “sloppiness” in answering the committee’s questions a week earlier had necessitated his return.