Donegal TD Pearse Doherty’s nomination of Mary Lou McDonald was overwhelmingly defeated as the 34th Dáil convened for the first time on December 18.
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00:00It is my great honour to nominate Weachtra and Hen Féin to take the Marylou Macdonald to the office of An Taoiseach.
00:08During the election we said that Ireland needed a new government and a new leadership for a better future.
00:13A new leadership with the vision, the determination and the political will to make a positive difference in the lives of ordinary workers, in families and in communities.
00:22A new leadership with new ideas to meet the incredible opportunities and important challenges facing Ireland over the next decade.
00:29Marylou Macdonald is that leader. She is a leader that is rooted in the Irish Republican principles of fairness, equality, economic justice and unity of our country.
00:41The government that Chakla Macdonald would lead would be a government of change.
00:45A new government that would end the housing crisis and make housing affordable for working people.
00:50A government that would transform our health services and end the wait for treatment.
00:55One that would introduce affordable childcare for families, ensure a better, fairer deal for ordinary workers and ensure that our young people can build a future and a life here in Ireland.
01:05We've had 100 years of Fianna Fáil and Finlaydale governments. It is enough.
01:10The last thing we need is another government that prioritises the wealth and privilege of those at the top.
01:15And that is what we will get again, be there no doubt about it, if Micheál Martin and Simon Harris get their deal over the line.
01:21Could I say in respect of the motion and the nomination before us to say that I think one of the things which most encourages cynicism about politics is when our time is wasted on empty gestures and grandstanding.
01:33There is no better way to describe the decision by Sinn Féin to propose its leader for the position of Taoiseach today.
01:40I think we all know that no one has the support yet to be elected as Taoiseach today.
01:47There is no new government available yet. Not one deputy will change their mind based on a vote being called today.
01:54Whoever is elected Taoiseach, and there may indeed be no successful election today notwithstanding the motion from Sinn Féin,
02:02I think whoever is ultimately elected Taoiseach, I think all of our energies must be focused on delivering the change that our communities need.
02:10And I do want to thank all those who put their trust and faith in Labour, TDs, in our elected deputies, and to thank all those who put their trust in us to bring about that change.
02:21I have in front of me the nomination of Mary Lou MacDonald. I just want to make a very quick point that I will be abstaining on that nomination.
02:29Simply because we don't have a real prospect of an alternative government, and in recent moves to the right that Sinn Féin have done,
02:40turning their backs on vulnerable groups like trans young people and denying them healthcare and refugees, it makes it very difficult to give them a free pass.
02:55Can you stop heckling me?
03:08People before prophets will be supporting the nomination of Mary Lou MacDonald. Not because we agree with Sinn Féin, we disagree with them on many things,
03:16not least their refusal to rule out coalition with Fianna Fáil and Fianna Gael, but we believe parties on the left have an obligation to end 100 years of Fianna Fáil and Fianna Gael
03:26and put together the first left-wing government this state has ever seen.