Fine Gael MEP says selection of leader could be more democratic

Grass-roots members of Fine Gael should be given greater say in electing a leader, Ireland South MEP, Sean Kelly has said.

He said the rules for the leadership contest should be tweaked to give greater power to councillors and the membership at the expense of the parliamentary party in order to better reflect the party’s grass roots.

Mr Kelly said the method of electing a new leader, which involved Simon Coveney and Leo Varadkar going head to head in four debates on the hustings, had created a buzz and energy within Fine Gael that could only be beneficial for the party.

• FG leadership tracker: track the contest and check who your local TD, Senator, MEP and councillor is supporting 

But he suggested the system might be tweaked so that members of the parliamentary party are restrained from declaring for a candidate until after the hustings series is complete. He also suggested re-weighting the voting so that the parliamentary party’s power is cut from 65 per cent to 50 per cent.

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“Once there was an announcement of hustings, I think it would have been better [for public representatives] to row back and see how it would go and make up their mind subsequently,” Mr Kelly told The Opinion Line on Cork’s 96FM.

“I thought some of my parliamentary colleagues probably came out a bit hastily. I don’t really know why they did that – it had been coming down the tracks for a long time and maybe there had been a lot of discussing among themselves, and then when one came out, another came out.”

More hustings

Mr Kelly said he would be in favour of holding more hustings-type meetings and holding them earlier in the leadership election campaign, with Fine Gael HQ asking public representatives to refrain from committing publicly to one candidate or another until the hustings were completed.

“I also think that would it be better that the parliamentary party would have 50 per cent [rather than 65 per cent of the vote] and the councillors and members would have 50 per cent, and that is something that should be looked at because the members are really engaged in this,” he said.

“I think you would probably get a better reflection of what they think right across the board by giving them a greater say. Also 10 per cent for the councillors isn’t a whole pile in terms of the number of councillors who are there, and also the vital part that they play in the party at local level.”

Mr Kelly didn’t disclose who he is voting for but he did reveal that he had urged Mr Coveney to stay in the race after an early avalanche of TDs and Senators declared for Mr Varadkar. He believed the party had benefited hugely from the leadership contest.

“I thought Simon Coveney performed extremely well at the hustings and I think as a result of staying in the race he has done a great service to the party and he has enhanced himself within the party,” said Mr Kelly.