Timing wrong for Greens’ leadership contest – Smyth

The Green Party’s focus should be on the ongoing discussions about forming a new government rather than a potential leadership contest, Cllr Hazel Smyth believes.

Last week, the party’s deputy leader Catherine Martin said that she would consider putting herself forward to challenge Eamon Ryan for the leadership of the party. Under the Greens’ constitution, a leadership contest must take place within six months of a general election, however, Cllr Smyth believes that the talks with Fine Gael and Fianna Fail have to be prioritised.

“I will say from my own standpoint it’s not ideal timing. Everybody right now is trying to come up with a way dealing with this awful crisis. My view is that the focus needs to be on government formation and to try to make sure that is the priority right now over anything else.

“I’m really hoping that we can work with the other parties and agree some type of programme for government. I’d love to see the greens at the top table. I think that we could bring a lot of really good ideas, knowledge and skills to the table. It would be really great if we were there.”

As to who she’d like to see leading the Green Party after the current talks are concluded, Cllr Smyth said that while she has no “particular strong view”, she has “a lot of time for Eamon Ryan”.

“I think he had done a really great job to rescue the party from ground zero after the 2008 decimation. I think he is a really good leader. Like everybody, he has his flaws, but I have a lot of time and respect for him.”

If the Greens enter an historic coalition with Fine Gael and Fianna Fail, Smyth hopes that the party will not suffer the same fate as in 2011 when its first period in government ended with all six of its TDs losing their seats.

“I’d like to think that we’ve learned a lot of lesson from the past. We have some really good strong TDs there and also the reality is that we need strong leadership now.

"My own personal view is that the country is in a crisis right now and I do think that priority needs to be on how can we work with the other parties to do the very best for the Irish people.

"That’s what everybody wants and that’s why I am hoping that the other parties will work with the Green Party as well to collaborate on the goals that the Green Party is setting out too.

"A lot of them have so much merit and if we can work collectively together on those we could transform Ireland.”