Munster Express Online

With strain and emotion clearly showing in his face, Martin Cullen faces the media outside Leinster House on Monday night having informed Taoiseach Brian Cowen of his decision to step down as minister and TD. | Photo: Courtesy RTE News

As predicted in last week’s editions, the Minister for Arts, Sports and Tourism, Martin Cullen, TD, has tendered his resignation to the Taoiseach and will cease to be both a minister and a TD before the end of the month.

His stand-down as a Minister on health grounds was expected but it hadn’t been clear whether or not Mr Cullen would also resign his Dáil seat. However, the severity of his back trouble is such that he felt he could not carry on and, at present, he is in the United States receiving medical treatment.

The focus now turns to the by-election that will be called at the discretion of the Taoiseach, Mr Cowen. It is unlikely that Fianna Fail will retain the seat because, apart at all from current displeasure with the government, by-elections are notoriously difficult for government parties to win.

At the time of writing, nobody had officially thrown their hat into the ring but, should he decide to seek a nomination, Tramore area councillor Pat Daly – a close aide of Mr Cullen’s – would appear to be the strongest candidate within the Fianna Fail party as he has a profile in the county and city and is very experienced.

However, supporters of former TD Ollie Wilkinson might beg to differ. He failed to regain the seat he won in 2002 at the ’07 general election and last year’s attempt to get re-elected to the County Council in the Dungarvan area instead of Lismore (where he’d been a runaway poll-topper before his son Kevin was co-opted under the dual mandate rule) didn’t go to plan.

See The Munster Express newspaper for full story.