Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I wish to start by expressing my absolute confidence in the Tánaiste, Leo Varadkar. Sinn Féin is here tonight yet again preaching, once more claiming to apply standards to everyone else in this House and to hold others to account, yet when its members are asked to account for their own actions, they fall silent. My colleagues have outlined many instances of hypocrisy but I will focus on one. Sinn Féin Deputies have talked about the challenging year people have faced due to Covid-19. In the midst of this pandemic, however, we saw Sinn Féin pack the streets and a cemetery for a funeral that was not even a funeral but was, in fact, a political rally organised by Sinn Féin in west Belfast. When asked to account for its actions in its undermining of public health, we faced silence. Sinn Féin has needlessly subjected the Dáil to this circus a week after the Tánaiste answered every question put to him and made himself accountable to this House, unlike those on the Opposition benches.

I have worked with the Tánaiste for eight years. I have seen how he works with other people and with organisations, political parties and colleagues. I have seen how he has worked in difficult situations with challenging problems as he tries to ensure that he listens to every single position put forward and that the best outcome is reached for everybody concerned. One does not have to work with him closely to see this; one need only look at the work he has done on Brexit. He is an honourable person. He cares about his work. People say he is ambitious. To be an ambitious public representative is to ensure the best possible outcome in everything one does for the people whom one represents.

As Taoiseach, one of Deputy Varadkar's priorities - and he made no secret of this - was to ensure that a deal was reached for a new GP contract. He is a former Minister for Health and someone who has trained as a GP and who saw the benefits of the contract, not just for patients but also for GPs and the wider public. This was his sole motive in sharing this document with the NAGP. He has apologised for how this was done but has also answered every question put to him in the House. That is why this motion is cynical, uncalled for and a waste of precious time when we could be dealing with issues such as Covid-19, Brexit or the multiple items of legislation and issues that people have elected us to deal with. This is nothing more than a political stunt. I fully support the Government's motion of confidence in An Tánaiste, Leo Varadkar.

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