The Wexford Fine Gael TD, Mr Ivan Yates, last night said he would not be a candidate for the party leadership.
Following the vote which brought the defeat of the party leader Mr John Bruton, Mr Yates said he had already made clear that he would not stand, and that was still the case. "For personal and family reasons I will not be a candidate," he said. "It is possible there will be [another] candidate but Michael Noonan is most likely the next leader of Fine Gael." He added he had already conveyed this to other party members. Regarding support for Mr Bruton within the party, said that in the 12 hours before the vote was taken, "obviously there was some slippage".
"However John was resolute in pressing it through to a vote. I would like to pay tribute to him, he put his heart and soul into everything," he added.
Asked whether the party would be divided he said: "I believe the party will unite behind the next leader. We faced similar circumstances when Alan Dukes resigned." Earlier yesterday the Mayo TD, Mr Michael Ring, said he may contest the leadership as a compromise candidate. Ahead of the meeting, he told the lunchtime news bulletin on Mid West radio: "A number of key people within the party have asked me to consider the role of leader since the weekend. "They are suggesting that I might run as a compromise candidate following the turmoil within the party. "At the moment I have not ruled anything in or out, all I know is that I will do whatever I believe is best for the party and for my county," he said.
He added that he was very unhappy with the way party members had criticised one another through the media.