Like Ireland’s Leo Varadkar, Justin Trudeau swept into power as a charismatic leader, but nine years later the wear and tear of office is visible.
Article content
Irish Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Leo Varadkar announced his shock resignation on March 20.
First elected to the Dáil (Irish Parliament) for the Fine Gael party in 2007, Varadkar had been Taoiseach from 2017 to 2020, and again from 2022 onward as part of a coalition agreement with erstwhile rivals Fianna Fáil.
Article content
His initial elevation to the top job in Irish politics at 38 drew headlines worldwide. Varadkar was Ireland’s youngest ever leader, and outlets across the globe marvelled at how the openly gay mixed-race son of an Indian father and Irish mother could ascend to the top of the greasy pole of politics in an ostensibly conservative Catholic country.
Advertisement 2
Article content
A slick and sometimes canny communicator, Varadkar seemed to embody the new progressive and cosmopolitan Ireland of the post-Celtic Tiger era. Notably, it was under his watch that Ireland amended the constitution to legislate for abortion in an epoch-defining referendum. Varadkar also skilfully navigated the choppy waters of the Brexit withdrawal process, keeping the EU onside and avoiding a hard border with Northern Ireland.
Since returning as Taoiseach in December 2022, however, Varadkar has largely been flat and aloof in the face of the challenges of the day.
Remarkably, instead of being turfed out by a power-hungry shark in the party who smelled blood, reports indicate that Varadkar told a private meeting of his party following his announcement that “I couldn’t find anyone to stab me in the back, so I fell on my sword instead.”
In public, Varadkar claimed his motivations were both personal and political. Without ever quite saying as much, he appeared to indicate that the attrition of office had taken its toll. Political burnout, in short — something increasingly seen among Canadian politicians, too.
Advertisement 3
Article content
What Varadkar said more plainly was that he no longer saw himself as best placed to lead his party. Local and European elections are set for early June and are regularly treated by the electorate as an opportunity to vent frustration at government parties. Even more daunting is the prospect of the general election nominally set for next spring. Fine Gael polling numbers have been very sluggish, and already a third of its parliamentary caucus has signalled it won’t run for re-election.
Simon Harris, the new leader and Taoiseach-designate, was acclaimed on March 24 without competition. Praise for Harris’s personal attributes from supporters was effusive, but discussion of policy accomplishments over eight years in cabinet or any new ideological vision was conspicuously absent. The only thing worse than a party racked by infighting is a party that has run out of gas with no one bothered to refill the tank. Imagine if Jean Chrétien had stepped aside only because otherwise Paul Martin would never have mustered the energy to try to become PM.
Many of the causes of Varadkar’s political burnout and the feared electoral drubbing he has opted to avoid are also found in Canada. Like the government in Ireland, Justin Trudeau’s Liberals are badly bruised by housing affordability, a health-care system in permanent crisis, concerns over mismanagement of the immigration file, stratifying inequality amid the cost-of-living crisis, and latent but lingering divisions from the pandemic era.
Advertisement 4
Article content
Like Varadkar, Trudeau swept into power as a charismatic wunderkind, but nine years later the wear and tear of office is equally visible. Trudeau is unlikely to admit to burnout despite a seemingly endless slew of scandals and own goals. And by all indications, he will remain Liberal leader in the next election campaign. But like Varadkar’s Fine Gael party, the federal Liberals have dried up as a grassroots organization. Anyone brave or foolish enough to try or want to replace Trudeau is either getting a hospital pass in office or one of the toughest rebuilding jobs in opposition the party will have ever undertaken.
Varadkar demonstrated unusual frankness in reflecting on himself as a political liability for his party and showing concern for his personal wellness. Nothing at present indicates we should expect Trudeau to do the same, but no one saw Varadkar’s resignation coming either.
Dónal Gill is assistant professor of Canadian politics at Concordia University.
Recommended from Editorial
-
Opinion: The case for an Irish consulate in Montreal
-
Tom Mulcair: Fond memories of Mulroney’s ‘blarney’ and empathy
-
Montreal ‘has come alive again’ for 199th St. Patrick’s Parade
Advertisement 5
Article content
Article content