Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said on Saturday he has no plans to call an election before Christmas and that uncertainty over Brexit must take precedence over the outcome of talks to extend an expiring government cooperation deal. Varadkar’s Fine Gael party and the main opposition group backing his minority government began talks on whether to renew their “confidence and supply” deal three weeks ago. His deputy leader said on Friday the agreement had a few more weeks to run. Varadkar insists that he wants to extend the pact until mid-2020, rather than capitalize on his Fine Gael party’s increased popularity by calling an immediate snap election.
The option of calling an election has also been complicated by the uncertainty over how neighboring Britain will leave the EU.
On Saturday he spelled out that he would not like to see parliament dissolved before the passing of key legislation by Christmas.
Full Article: Irish PM says no plans to call election before Christmas | Reuters.