He will have to immediately stamp his authority on the party, prepare for coming European elections, hold a budget in the autumn, and ready his party for what will be a pivotal election in March next year.
Was it simply a case of voters not liking these specific changes? Or does it point to a deeper alienation between the voters and Ireland’s political class?
Rishi Sunak should build on the recent progress in Northern Ireland to impress upon Dublin the urgency of stepping up our efforts to counter Russian, Chinese, and Iranian threats to our joint security.
Also: SNP plunged into fresh controversy over misleading claim about healthcare spending, whilst Kate Forbes gears up for an internal battle over the Scottish Government’s income tax plans.
Changes to the definition of the family could have serious consequences for tax, inheritance law, and other important areas. Yet the politicians are leaving the new definition up to the judges.
In the event that Northern Ireland did become a weak link in the UK’s border security, it is not difficult to imagine a future government preferring to start quietly hiving off Northern Ireland.
With concern over the sea border still preventing the return of devolved government, some symbolic recognition of Ulster’s place in the UK could hardly go amiss.
The undoubted prestige of having an Irishman in a leading global role would be offset by potential short term political pain, not welcome at any time but especially in a potential election year.
That the chances of securing a successful prosecution for a Troubles-related crime are negligible, because of the passage of time and the quality of evidence now available, is a difficult fact to face.
The Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act expressly provides in Section 19 for an immunity system. Yet Sir Declan Morgan, the judge overseeing the process, says an adverse judgment will kill it.
Many Irish policymakers make the reasonable point, if it’s a simple matter of tax rates, then why haven’t more countries simply adopted this approach? It has been in place for decades, there’s been plenty of time.
So far only one city, Limerick, has endorsed the new model, with Cork and Waterford both rejecting it. A Mayor of Dublin could be a powerful national figure – but will national politicians be prepared to cede the powers required?
Advocates are concerned the public will lose interest if they aren’t driving major reforms; sceptics worry that politicians are outsourcing difficult questions to people with neither expertise nor mandate.
The role of the presidency has changed dramatically in the last three decades, and what had previously been considered fairly dull elections have been enlivened in recent years with a range of different candidates and visions for the office.
Sinn Féin are already the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and are poised to form the next government in Dublin. Fine Gael and the DUP thus have a common enemy.