The 35th government of Ireland is the
government of Ireland
The Government of Ireland () is the executive (government), executive authority of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, headed by the , the head of government. The government – also known as the cabinet (government), cabinet – is composed of Mini ...
which was formed on 23 January 2025 following the
2024 general election to the
34th Dáil
The 34th Dáil was elected at the 2024 general election on 29 November 2024 and first met on 18 December 2024. The members of Dáil Éireann, the house of representatives of the Oireachtas (legislature) of Ireland, are known as TDs. It is sitt ...
held on 29 November 2024. It is a
coalition government
A coalition government, or coalition cabinet, is a government by political parties that enter into a power-sharing arrangement of the executive. Coalition governments usually occur when no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an ...
of
Fianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil ( ; ; meaning "Soldiers of Destiny" or "Warriors of Fál"), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party (), is a centre to centre-right political party in Ireland.
Founded as a republican party in 1926 by Éamon de ...
and
Fine Gael
Fine Gael ( ; ; ) is a centre-right, liberal-conservative, Christian democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil Éireann. The party had a member ...
with the participation of
independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States
* Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...
TDs at the rank of
minister of state
Minister of state is a designation for a government minister, with varying meanings in different jurisdictions. In a number of European countries, the title is given as an honorific conferring a higher rank, often bestowed upon senior minister ...
. It has lasted to date.
Government formation talks
Government formation followed negotiations on a
programme for government for a
coalition government
A coalition government, or coalition cabinet, is a government by political parties that enter into a power-sharing arrangement of the executive. Coalition governments usually occur when no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an ...
of
Fianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil ( ; ; meaning "Soldiers of Destiny" or "Warriors of Fál"), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party (), is a centre to centre-right political party in Ireland.
Founded as a republican party in 1926 by Éamon de ...
,
Fine Gael
Fine Gael ( ; ; ) is a centre-right, liberal-conservative, Christian democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil Éireann. The party had a member ...
and the
Regional Independent Group (a group of
independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States
* Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...
politicians led by former government minister
Michael Lowry).
Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin
Micheál Martin (; born 16 August 1960) is an Irish Fianna Fáil politician serving as Taoiseach since January 2025, having previously held the position from 2020 to 2022. Martin served as Tánaiste, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Min ...
will serve as
Taoiseach
The Taoiseach (, ) is the head of government or prime minister of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The office is appointed by the President of Ireland upon nomination by Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legisl ...
, with
Fine Gael leader
The Leader of Fine Gael is the most senior politician within the Fine Gael political party in Ireland. The party leader is Simon Harris, who took up the role on 24 March 2024 after the resignation of Leo Varadkar.
The deputy leader of Fine Gael ...
Simon Harris
Simon Harris (born 17 October 1986) is an Irish Fine Gael politician serving as Tánaiste, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade and Minister for Defence since January 2025, having previously served as Taoiseach from 2024 to 2025. He has ...
serving as
Tánaiste
The Tánaiste ( , ) is the second-ranking member of the government of Ireland and the holder of its second-most senior office. It is the equivalent of the deputy prime minister in other parliamentary systems.
The Tánaiste is appointed by the P ...
. It was agreed that the government will last until November 2027, after which the positions will
rotate
Rotation or rotational/rotary motion is the circular movement of an object around a central line, known as an ''axis of rotation''. A plane figure can rotate in either a clockwise or counterclockwise sense around a perpendicular axis interse ...
, with the
Fine Gael leader
The Leader of Fine Gael is the most senior politician within the Fine Gael political party in Ireland. The party leader is Simon Harris, who took up the role on 24 March 2024 after the resignation of Leo Varadkar.
The deputy leader of Fine Gael ...
forming a new government as Taoiseach, and the
Fianna Fáil leader serving as Tánaiste.
It is the second time that
Fianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil ( ; ; meaning "Soldiers of Destiny" or "Warriors of Fál"), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party (), is a centre to centre-right political party in Ireland.
Founded as a republican party in 1926 by Éamon de ...
and
Fine Gael
Fine Gael ( ; ; ) is a centre-right, liberal-conservative, Christian democratic political party in Ireland. Fine Gael is currently the third-largest party in the Republic of Ireland in terms of members of Dáil Éireann. The party had a member ...
have participated in the same government; the two parties were in government during the lifetime of the previous Dáil, from June 2020 to January 2025, with the
Green Party
A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice.
Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...
.
Nomination of Taoiseach
The
34th Dáil
The 34th Dáil was elected at the 2024 general election on 29 November 2024 and first met on 18 December 2024. The members of Dáil Éireann, the house of representatives of the Oireachtas (legislature) of Ireland, are known as TDs. It is sitt ...
first met on 18 December. Harris resigned as Taoiseach before the Dáil convened.
Under the provisions of Article 28.11 of the Constitution, the members of the government continued to carry out their duties until their successors were appointed.
Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald
Mary Louise McDonald (born 1 May 1969) is an Irish politician who has served as Leader of the Opposition in Ireland since June 2020, as President of Sinn Féin since February 2018, and as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dublin Central constituen ...
was
proposed for nomination as Taoiseach, with other parties abstaining from nomination as the government formation talks had not yet concluded.
McDonald failed to obtain majority support.
On 22 January 2025, the Dáil again met to consider nominations for the position of Taoiseach. Opposition parties raised the issue of a
technical group
In parliamentary politics, a technical group or mixed group is a heterogeneous group of elected officials who are of differing ideologies, comprising multiple small political parties, independent politicians, or a combination of both. They can be ...
supporting the programme for government registering as an opposition group with speaking rights. Amid chaotic scenes, the Dáil was suspended three times before
Ceann Comhairle
The (; "Head of heCouncil"; plural usually ) is the chairperson (or speaker) of , the lower house of the (parliament) of Ireland. The person who holds the position is elected by members of the from among their number in the first session ...
Verona Murphy suspended sitting for the day.
Micheál Martin
Micheál Martin (; born 16 August 1960) is an Irish Fianna Fáil politician serving as Taoiseach since January 2025, having previously held the position from 2020 to 2022. Martin served as Tánaiste, Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Min ...
said the failure to elect a Taoiseach was "the subversion of the Irish constitution" and a "premeditated" and "coordinated" effort by the opposition, adding it was the first time in over 100 years that the Dáil had failed to elect a government.
On 23 January 2025, following talks between party leaders, the Dáil again sat to consider the nomination of the Taoiseach. Micheál Martin and Mary Lou McDonald were proposed, with the nomination of Martin approved by a vote of 95 to 76. The nomination of Mary Lou McDonald was not considered.
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
* President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film and television
*'' Præsident ...
Michael D. Higgins
Michael Daniel Higgins (; born 18 April 1941) is an Irish politician, poet, broadcaster, and sociologist who has been serving as the president of Ireland since 2011. Entering national politics through the Labour Party, he served as a senator ...
signed the
warrant of appointment
A warrant of appointment is the official document presented by the president of Ireland to persons upon appointment to certain high offices of state, signed by the president and bearing the official seal of the president. Warrants are presented t ...
and presented the seal of Taoiseach and the seal of Government to Martin at
Áras an Uachtaráin
(; "Residence of the President"), formerly the Viceregal Lodge, is the List of official residences, official residence and principal workplace of the President of Ireland.
It is located off Chesterfield Avenue in the Phoenix Park in Dublin, ...
.
Government ministers
After his appointment as Taoiseach by the president, Martin proposed the members of the government and they were approved by the Dáil.
They were appointed by the president on the same day.
[
]
Attorney General
Rossa Fanning SC was appointed by the president as Attorney General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...
on the nomination of the Taoiseach.[
]
Ministers of state
Events affecting the government
Prior to the nomination of Taoiseach, a row ensued after four TDs of the Regional Independent Group ( Michael Lowry, Gillian Toole, Barry Heneghan and Danny Healy-Rae) sought to be part of a technical group
In parliamentary politics, a technical group or mixed group is a heterogeneous group of elected officials who are of differing ideologies, comprising multiple small political parties, independent politicians, or a combination of both. They can be ...
, granting them Dáil speaking rights and positioning itself on the opposition benches, while also supporting the government. This was rejected by opposition parties, resulting in chaotic exchanges in the Dáil. On 3 February 2025, eleven days after the government was formed, Ceann Comhairle
The (; "Head of heCouncil"; plural usually ) is the chairperson (or speaker) of , the lower house of the (parliament) of Ireland. The person who holds the position is elected by members of the from among their number in the first session ...
Verona Murphy ruled that the Regional Group could not form a technical group for the purposes of speaking rights. This was welcomed by opposition parties. The next day, the Regional Independent Group and government parties conceded and said they would not challenge Murphy's ruling.
However, on 25 March, angry and chaotic exchanges broke out in the Dáil again leading Ceann Comhairle Verona Murphy to adjourn the session after the government won a vote to change standing orders which allowed the Regional Independents' technical group, coalition backbenchers and government-aligned independents additional speaking time in the Dáil, a reduction in time for debating the order of business and halving Taoiseach's Questions time. Taoiseach Micheál Martin defended the changes, stating that they did not alter Opposition speaking time or reduce government accountability, dismissing Opposition reactions as "wholly disproportionate." Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin ( ; ; ) is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
The History of Sinn Féin, original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffit ...
leader Mary Lou McDonald
Mary Louise McDonald (born 1 May 1969) is an Irish politician who has served as Leader of the Opposition in Ireland since June 2020, as President of Sinn Féin since February 2018, and as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dublin Central constituen ...
strongly criticised the move, calling it an "absurd brazen stroke" that would undermine the Dáil. The following day, the Opposition parties informed Murphy that they had no confidence in her to perform the role of Ceann Comhairle and that she had a week to consider resigning before they tabled an official motion of no confidence in her. The vote was held on 1 April 2025, with Murphy retaining her position as Ceann Comhairle by 96 votes to 71.
References
{{EU governments
34th Dáil
Cabinets established in 2025
Governments of Ireland
Coalition governments of Ireland
Dáil
Grand coalition governments