Varadkar resigns

Leo Varadkar, the Irish Taoiseach, has tendered his resignation. After gambling his political career on an election in which he hoped Brexit would be the defining factor, the Irish voters decided they cared about pretty much anything but.

In fact, just one per cent of Irish voters cited Brexit as a decisive factor for them in this month’s general election. Instead, voters focused on issues that might actually affect their lives such as housing and healthcare. The result was that Varadkar’s Fine Gael party was knocked into third place, behind Fianna Fail and Sinn Fein. The gamble clearly failed.

Ireland’s new parliament, the 33rd Dail, met for the first time yesterday. The opening ceremony was followed by Varadkar formally handing in his notice to the Irish president Michael D Higgins last night. However, he is expected to stay on in a caretaker role until either Sinn Fein or Fianna Fail are able to form a government, with RTE reporting that his government will avoid making any major financial or policy decisions until a new administration is formed.