The Fine Gael TD for Clare Joe Carey has announced he is resigning from public life because of serious health issues.
Mr Carey has been on sick leave since March 2023 and, on Monday, confirmed he will not be a candidate in the next general election.
The decision was based on medical advice, he said. Mr Carey (49) added he had told party members in Clare that he had to prioritise himself, his wife, Grace, and his two children. He told them that had been the reason he had made the difficult decision to retire from a job he loved.
“In the past year, I suffered a life-altering medical situation that I will be dealing with for the rest of my time on earth. While I would dearly wish to continue, my decision to step away is based on medical advice.
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“I have had the absolute privilege to serve for the past 25 years as a public representative, eight as a county councillor and 17 as a TD.”
Sixteen of 35 Fine Gael TDs who won seats in 2020 have now confirmed they will not contest the next general election.
Mr Carey is the son of Donal Carey, a long-serving Senator and TD for Clare until he lost his seat in the 2002 general election. Joe was elected in the 2007 general election and retained the seat over the three succeeding elections.
His sister, Leonora, who works as an occupational therapist in Limerick, confirmed on Monday that she will seek a nomination to become a candidate. The selection convention for Clare is being held on September 6th.
In a statement, Mr Carey thanked his family and party leader, Taoiseach Simon Harris, for their support during his illness. His last public appearance was when he was a special guest of Mr Harris and Dublin Lord Mayor James Geoghegan at the recent All Ireland hurling final, where Clare defeated Cork.
During his parliamentary career, Mr Carey served on a number of parliamentary committees and was also deputy Government chief whip during the 2011 to 2016 government. He was served as chair of the Oireachtas Committee on Transport from 2022 until he became unwell in March 2023.
Leonora Carey has also been involved with the party over many years and has served as chair of the party’s national executive.
In a statement released shortly after her brother’s announcement, she said: “The issues facing people in Clare and the Midwest require a new approach to how politicians can make a real difference to the lives of ordinary people. Over the coming weeks, I will be engaging with party members to give me the opportunity to make that difference.”
Clare party colleague, Senator Martin Conway, said it had been a privilege for him to work with Joe Carey over 20 years and that Mr Carey had been a great advocate for the people of Clare.
Mr Conway also contested the 2020 election as a Fine Gael candidate in Clare.
A total of 15 sitting Fine Gael TD have indicated they will not stand in the next election. They are:
Joe McHugh (Donegal)
Brendan Griffin (Kerry)
John Paul Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny)
Michael Creed (Cork North West)
David Stanton (Cork East)
Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North)
Charlie Flanagan (Laois)
Fergus O’Dowd (Louth)
Paul Kehoe (Wexford)
Ciaran Cannon (Galway East)
Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown)
Simon Coveney (Cork South Central)
Leo Varadkar (Dublin West)
Michael Ring (Mayo)
Joe Carey (Clare).
In addition, Eoghan Murphy, a Fine Gael TD for Dublin Bay South, resigned from the Dáil in 2021. Ivana Bacik (Labour) won the subsequent byelection. Meanwhile, former Fine Gael minister Joe McHugh parted ways with the party over the issue of mica-damaged homes.
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