Leo Varadkar has dismissed Fine Gael’s poor showing in a new opinion poll as he insisted that he will continue to lead his party “from the front”.
The Taoiseach was reacting to a poll in the Irish Times on Thursday that showed his party suffered a four point drop in support to just 18 per cent. It means Fine Gael is now the third most popular party in the country between Sinn Féin (31%) and Fianna Fáil (21%).
Mr Varadkar’s own popularity also took a battering, falling six points to 37%.
READ MORE: War of words between Micheál Martin and Paul Murphy over neutrality talks
The poor results come just days after a number of Sunday newspapers reported that Mr Varadkar’s leadership of Fine Gael was in doubt.
At the parliamentary party meeting on Wednesday night, a scheduled budget meeting was postponed and a number of senior ministers, TDs and Senators rallied around their leader.
Asked about the poor results at the opening of the N5 road in Mayo, the Taoiseach downplayed concerns.
He said: “Polls go up and they go down. We are probably back to where we were this time last year. We bounced back from that, we'll bounce back again.
“The best way to do that is to lead from the front. That's what I'll be doing with every piece of energy that I have. And, as well as that, focusing on the issues that people care about the most.
“That's helping families at the cost of living, to building more houses and it's investing in rural Ireland and all regions in Ireland to make sure that all parts of Ireland share in our prosperity.
“We'd a really good parliamentary party meeting last night. [It] confirmed my view that I have the support of the overwhelming majority of my parliamentary party.
“I'll be leading from the front with absolute energy and absolute commitment. My focus is on the things that matter to people the most.
“I'll be contesting the next general election in my constituency, looking for a fifth term in Dublin West.
“I intend to lead the party into the next election. My focus isn't actually on party politics, it's on leading the government.
“The most important thing that we can do as a Government is to concentrate, not on party issues, but on the things that concern people.”
When asked what if he felt betrayed that some of his party members were talking to the media about their feelings about him, Mr Varadkar once again repeated that people want politicians to focus on people’s concerns rather than their own concerns.
READ NEXT:
Sligo train tragedy survivor 'will never forget' what aunt said in final moments
Ireland weather latest as rare warning issued and heatwave end date in sight
Join our new WhatsApp community! Click this link to receive breaking news and the latest headlines direct to your phone. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
