Former Progressive Democrat councillor Cáit Keane today announced her decision to join Fine Gael.
Ms Keane, who has served as a local councillor in south Dublin since 1991, said the move was prompted by the ¿effective winding down of the party¿ since the watershed of the last general election.
She said she believed joining Fine Gael was best way to represent the electorate of Terenure and Rathfarnham.
¿I consulted with my family and my supporters and decided that a re-energised and dynamic Fine Gael team under the leadership of Enda Kenny was the one I wanted to join,¿ she said.
Welcoming Ms Keane¿s decision, Mr Kenny said the move was positive vote of confidence in the party.
¿This is the first move by a PD public representative to join an alternative party since the PDs¿ parliamentary party decided that they were no longer a viable political entity and, I believe, reflects the reality that many of the existing PD public representatives are now facing," he said.
