Fresh tensions emerge between Greens and Fine Gael over future road projects

Fresh tensions have emerged between Fine Gael and the Green Party over future national roads projects.

At a meeting of the Fine Gael parliamentary party on Wednesday evening, TDs and Senators passed a motion calling for a meeting with Green Party leader and Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan over the “withdrawal of funding for a number of national road projects including the N4”.

The motion was proposed by Senator Micheal Carrigy who told the meeting that investment in the midlands region would suffer, and it would be further pushed away from the capital, if long term funding is not secured to lock in consultants and planning permission.

The proposed N4 Mullingar to Longford (Rooskey) Road Scheme will upgrade 50km of the N4 National Primary Route between the N4 Dromod-Rooskey bypass and the N4 Mullingar bypass.

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Along with Ministers and TDs, he will now be seeking a meeting with Mr Ryan before the end of the month, as he said he is concerned the project will not proceed.

A source said there is growing tension within Fine Gael over the issue which is expected to become more divisive over the summer months.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar also have an update on capital spending in schools, broadband, housing, transport and other areas for the first six months of this year. He told the meeting that spending is 30 per cent higher than for the same period in 2022.

At the Fianna Fáil parliamentary party meeting, Carlow Kilkenny TD John McGuinness raised concerns around politicians’ safety, with a number of his colleagues speaking about increased harassment at the gates of Leinster House.

Separately, at an earlier meeting, members of the Fianna Fáil parliamentary party met with representatives of the pub and restaurant sector who were calling for a decoupling of the 9 per cent VAT rate between accommodation and food.

A source said there was support among some TDs in favour of claims that food businesses are more “vulnerable” and that a case could be made for the two sectors to be treated separately as part of budget talks.

Meanwhile Taoiseach Leo Varadkar also updated his party on the payments controversy in RTÉ. He said there has been no request for a bailout from RTÉ but that “significant conditionality” would be required if Government was to ever accede to such a request.

He said where this has occurred for other organisations in the past, it had not been granted without significant conditionality from Government.

He also spoke about the decision by MEPs to vote in favour of a Nature Restoration Law at the European Parliament today.

Mr Varadkar defended his party’s stance throughout and said that Fine Gael was “right to oppose the initial proposal from the European Commission that went too far and would have been injurious to farmers and rural communities.”

Mr Varadkar said we there will be a “more realistic and workable Nature Law because of our stance. This will be good for biodiversity and communities in Rural Ireland.”