In his inaugural speech as leader of the ruling Fine Gael party at the party conference in West Meath on March 24, Mr Harris said: "I am honoured to be here today officially with you to become leader of this great party, our great party."
"I want to thank every single person in this room and every single community across Ireland for the trust they have placed in me. Today I want to promise and commit to repaying that trust by working hard with blood, sweat and tears, day in and day out, with responsibility, with humility and with decency," Mr Harris said.
Simon Harris, Ireland's Ministerfor Higher Education , prepares to speak after being announced as the new leader of the Fine Gael party. Photo: Reuters
Mr Harris will replace Leo Varadkar as party leader, who unexpectedly announced his resignation on March 20 for "personal and political , but mainly political" reasons. Mr Varadkar made headlines in 2017 when he became Ireland's youngest Prime Minister at the age of 38.
The new 37-year-old leader of the Fine Gale party, known for leading Ireland's initial response to the COVID-19 pandemic, will be elected Ireland's youngest-ever prime minister at the next parliament on April 9 thanks to support from coalition partners.
After succeeding Mr Varadkar as Fine Gael leader, Mr Harris pledged to help small businesses, focus on law and order and tackle immigration. He told reporters he planned to run for the remainder of his term, which ends in March 2025.
He is one of Ireland's most prominent government ministers and a skilled communicator with a keen eye for social media. Mr Harris's presence on TikTok has led one parliamentary opponent to dub him the "TikTok taoiseach" (Irish for prime minister).
Mr Harris previously served as Ireland’s Minister for Higher Education. According to Fine Gael’s website, he also served as the country’s Minister for Health from May 2016 to June 2020.
Ngoc Anh (according to CNN, Reuters)
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