Elaine Loughlin: Humphreys goes from stumbling minister to vital cog in party’s engine

‘Is Heather Humphreys running out of places to hide?’ read the headline on a 2014 Irish Examiner analysis piece about the then arts minister.

Fast forward eight years and far from seeking cover, a self-assured and highly respected Humphreys is running out of places to be seen as she continues with her rural roadshows, regularly appears in the media, and just yesterday opened the first National Community and Voluntary Civic Forum.

The Minister for Social Protection and Rural and Community Development, who will again step in for Justice Minister Helen McEntee on a temporary basis as she takes maternity leave, is now held in such high regard that she has a list of TDs and senators who are willing to lobby on her behalf ahead of the impending reshuffle.

In recent weeks, a jitteriness has swept in over Leinster House as Government politicians, like children anticipating Santa, wait for the goodies to be given out in the pre-Christmas reshuffle.

Most ministers are now keeping the head down in the hope of staying on the “good list”. However, Humphreys has taken a different approach and has been popping up everywhere from creches, to men’s sheds, and just like Mr Claus himself, has been doling out financial sweeties and grants wherever she goes.

But back in 2014 Humphreys was engulfed in controversy. Her handling of the appointment of John McNulty to the Irish Museum of Modern Art (Imma) board forced fellow Fine Gael colleagues to admit that the rookie minister had not “stepped up to the mark”, while the opposition was accusing her of running scared.

From bad to worse

The situation went from bad to worse for Humphreys when she (the minister directly responsible for the highly controversial appointment which came shortly before he was named as Fine Gael’s candidate in the Seanad by-election) tried to claim it was a “Fine Gael matter”.

She failed to even string a sentence together when questioned by reporters about the McNulty affair.

“When I appointed John McNulty, and emm Mary O’.. emm .. sorry can we go again.”

The Mary she had been referring to was in fact Sheila O’Regan who she had also appointed to the board.

It was among a string of poor performances, which had members of the media cringing for a politician who was clearly was out of her depth and constantly tripping over her words.

Things weren’t much better behind the scenes. Asked to provide an account of the McNulty affair to Fine Gael TDs and senators at a private parliamentary party meeting, she decided to read from a script.

“It was bizarre. This was a behind-closed-doors meeting where people are expected to speak their minds, not read out a speech. It looked awful,” one TD remarked at the time.

The debacle came just two months after her surprise elevation to a Cabinet position following a reshuffle.

The appointment came as a surprise to even the woman herself, who minutes before had been drinking coffee with a few Fine Gael TDs who were swapping rumours.

In a colour piece, Irish Examiner political correspondent Shaun Connolly summed it up well: “The first word uttered by many when news broke of Ms Humphreys being appointed to the Arts post was: ‘Who?’”

Irish Examiner Political Correspondent Paul Hosford speaking to Heather Humphreys at the Fine Gael ard fheis at the Technical University of Shannon, Athlone. Picture: Dan Linehan

The Fine Gael TD had, up to that point, a low national profile, even by the standards of most backbenchers.

Enda Kenny placed his faith in her, allowing her leap-frog more experienced colleagues. In a place like Leinster House, where the knives are always kept sharpened, it was a decision that could easily have generated jealousy and bitterness.

However, her appointment was welcomed with genuine goodwill as the first-time TD was already popular within her party.

It was perhaps her popularity which in the end helped her scrape through the McNulty debacle and has facilitated her rise within Fine Gael since then.

A safe pair of hands

Once seen as a bumbling and stumbling minister, especially in her early media performances, she is now viewed as a safe pair of hands who has delivered for Fine Gael.

So much so, that TDs and senators have in recent weeks been campaigning on her behalf.

Her proactive approach and strong interjections have sparked praise from within her own ranks, with some going as far as pleading with Tánaiste Leo Varadkar not to move her out of either social protection or the rural brief in December’s reshuffle.

During last week’s parliamentary party meeting senator Jerry Buttimer interjected to praise her for her handling of a niche but important issue relating to those on disability allowance who take up training courses.

Minister for Social Protection and Rural and Community Development Heather Humphreys, taking part in a discussion on the cost of living at during the Fine Gael Ard Fheis. Picture: Damien Storan/PA

The Cork senator told colleagues that the issue “could have been potentially calamitous for us as a party and the minister reacted with wonderful vigour”.

Later in the meeting, attention once again was directed to Humphreys when Galway TD Ciarán Cannon urged the Tánaiste to fight strongly on her behalf in the upcoming Cabinet reshuffle.

He said Humphreys has been instrumental in “rebuilding trust” with rural voters, adding that the party would be in “serious trouble” if they lost the social protection brief in the reshuffle.

Others have also stressed the importance of retaining the rural portfolio, with one ministerial adviser noting that there is a gold plaque with her name on it in every small village and town across the country.

Mr Varadkar told the private meeting that Fianna Fáil will get to take a ministry from Fine Gael and it’s not the case that Fine Gael will get what it wants if there is any swap between both parties.

But it is clear that keeping Heather Humphreys in her current role is very much what the party wants.

Did You Know? 

The European Parliament (EP) calendar is divided into plenary sittings (part-sessions) and meetings.

It comprises of 12 four-day part-sessions in Strasbourg and additional two-day part-sessions in Brussels. 

Two weeks a month are set aside for meetings of parliamentary committees and interparliamentary delegations, while one week a month is dedicated to political group meetings. 

There are also four weeks a year where MEPs concentrate exclusively on constituency work.

This week the EP is sitting in Strasbourg for a plenary session and will mark the creation of the Common Assembly of the European Coal and Steel Community in 1952 with a ceremony on Tuesday.

This week in years gone by

1905

Nov 28: Sinn Féin was founded by Arthur Griffith. While Mary Lou McDonald's party claims a direct link back to then, many of the original party members went on to join Fianna Fáil or Cumann na nGaedhael after the foundation of the state.

1920

Nov 28: A flying column led by Tom Barry killed 16 Auxiliaries at Kilmichael in Co Cork. The attack was recognised as one of the turning points in the War of Independence.

1995

Nov 24: A referendum to allow divorce narrowly passed. However, anti-divorce campaigners immediately vowed to seek to legally overturn the vote. It was reported that a High Court challenge would not centre on the outcome - where the 'Yes' majority was just 9,114 out of a total vote of 1,628,570 - but rather on the Governments £500,000 (punt) pro-divorce campaign funding, which the Supreme Court had recently ruled to be unconstitutional.

1998

Nov 26: Tony Blair made history when he became the first British prime minister to address the Oireachtas. Speaking to TDs and senators in the Dáil Chamber he stressed that British-Irish relations must be about more than Northern Ireland. "We must not be prisoners of our history, but put the past behind us and build a better future," he said.

2017

Nov 24: Under the headline 'Collateral Damage', it was reported that the country was facing the possibility of a snap general election in January after then Taoiseach Leo Varadkar refused to sack his Tánaiste, Frances Fitzgerald over the Maurice McCabe email saga. However, with the Government under immense pressure Ms Fitzgerald stood aside just four days later.

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