Simon Coveney refuses to confirm whether he will run in next general election

Question marks hang over the future of Simon Coveney’s political career as he refused to confirm whether he will run again in the next general election.

It comes as the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment announced he will step down from the Cabinet next week.

The Fine Gael TD for Cork made the announcement on Tuesday.

Despite saying he will run again as a candidate in the next general election less than two weeks ago, Mr Coveney would not confirm whether it remains his plan.

He said his future plans ahead of the next general election were “not for this week”.

“I’m a committed TD for Cork South Central. I intend on continuing to be that for the foreseeable future. But look, I’ll talk to my own team and my constituency and our councillors over the summer,” Mr Coveney told RTE.

“It’s not a yes or it’s not a no. It’s me being honest about it. I have to decide now what the future is for me, and how I can contribute and that’s something I’m not going to rush.

“It’s something to be honest I hadn’t even thought about really because I’ve been so focused and busy on the various different jobs that I’ve been so lucky to have.

“Now I’m going to have a little bit more time to focus on my constituency and our candidates that are running for local elections and for the European elections too and I’ll put a bit of thought into that over the next few months, but I’m not going to rush it.”

He also admitted he got an “adrenaline rush” when former party leader Leo Varadkar told him he was stepping down as he contemplated whether to contest the leadership.

But Mr Coveney, who was defeated by Mr Varadkar when he ran for the leadership in 2017, quickly ruled himself out.

“I got an adrenaline rush I think like anybody would when Leo decided to step down,” he said.

“I think everybody within the party thought about what the future was going to hold.

“But look, I made a decision with my family a number of years ago. I said the day after Leo stepped down that I wouldn’t be putting myself forward for the leadership of the party again, to be honest, that was a family personal decision.

“I’ve got three daughters that are entering their teenage years.

“And for me, I had a go at the leadership in terms of a contest with Leo.

“I was very lucky to be the deputy leader of the party, to be tanaiste for a number of years, and to be right at the centre of decision making in government for many years.

“That for me was the most rewarding job I could ever have had in politics. I have no regrets on that and as I said, I’m at peace with that decision.”