Ryan steps down as Green leader, will not run in election

Eamon Ryan has announced that he is stepping down as leader of the Green Party, and will not stand in the next general election.

In an announcement at this morning’s Cabinet meeting, Mr Ryan said he was stepping down “to pass the torch to a new generation of leaders”.

Mr Ryan will continue as party leader and in his role as Minister for Communications, Climate and Environment until a replacement is appointed, adding he looked forward to fulfilling whatever role a new leader assigns him for as long as the current Government remains in place.

“I spent the last 30 years either running for or holding public office … it’s been an absolute privilege. I want to thank the electorate who voted for me on eight different occasions over those years, giving me the opportunity to serve our city and country to the best of my ability,” he said.

Mr Ryan said it was “an honour” to lead the party, which he said had shown “great resilience and good humour” in meeting challenges it had to face.

“I will continue to work on climate action but in a different way,” he said.

He added: “I cannot continue to work the long hours that being a public representative involves which is why I’m not standing again in the next general election.

“I have parenting commitments at home which I also want to serve. We have a son with special needs who also requires my attention.

“My wife Victoria has been my greatest support and inspiration. I want to thank her and all my family and friends who have been at my side at all times.”

Mr Ryan said he came to the decision “a while ago”, but that the time was not quite right to announce it.

“We are into a new political cycle now. The local and European elections have been completed and while the next election won’t happen immediately, it is something that every party will be preparing for over the coming weeks and months.

“This is a good time to hand over to a new leader who can bring a new perspective and new way of doing things to the job.”

Mr Ryan said he will stay “completely neutral” in the campaign to appoint his successor. “Our party will have a mechanism that will be set out in the coming days,” he added.

“I don’t know who is going to run, but one thing I’m certain of is we have really good potential leaders so whoever it is I’ll be backing them up to the hilt once they’re elected.”

Mr Ryan has led the party since 2011 and retained the role after a leadership contest in 2020 when he defeated Catherine Martin by 994 votes to 946.

Deputy leader Catherine Martin, who is the current deputy leader of the Green Party, is seen as the frontrunner to replace him as leader.

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This afternoon, Taoiseach Simon Harris described Mr Ryan as “a politician of enormous standing”.

“Eamon is a genuine, passionate and inherently decent person who brings those same qualities to politics.

“The Government’s work continues and the programme for government between the three coalition parties will continue to be implemented. We have much work to do.

Mr Ryan was first elected to the Dáil in 2002 in what was then the Dublin South constituency, and served as minister for communications from 2007 to 2011.

He lost his Dáil seat in 2011 but was re-elected in Dublin Bay South in 2016.

His announcement comes after both of the Green Party’s MEPs – Ciarán Cuffe and Grace O’Sullivan – lost their seats in the European elections.

The number of Green Party councillors was also halved in the local elections.

Mr Ryan is the second leader of a coalition party to step down this year, after former taoiseach Leo Varadkar stepped away from that role and stepped down as Fine Gael leader in April.