‘It's a firm no from me' – GAA President Jarlath Burns again rules out Áras bid

Irish Independent

4 days ago

As speculation around who will appear on the ballot to elect President Michael D Higgins' successor continues, the Armagh man has again distanced himself from a bid for Áras an Úachtaráin.
While his name has been touted in political circles as a potential candidate and he been given 33/1 odds at the bookies to become the next Irish president, Burns has said his answer to the question of mounting a campaign remains 'a firm no'.
Asked whether he is going to enter the race, he said: 'I most certainly am not. I can confidently say that today [and] confirm it for you. I have another year of the GAA presidency to do and I would certainly not be in the mood to give that up to go for anything else.
"I have a lot of things to do in the GAA and a very short time to do it, so thank you very much for asking but it's a firm no from me.'
He was speaking to RTÉ's Morning Ireland after drawing the fixtures for the Tailteann Cup quarter-finals.
It is not the first time that the GAA president has been asked about his plans as President Michael D Higgins' second seven-year term in office draws to a close.
Earlier this year, Burns told a press briefing that a presidential bid is 'not on my radar'.
"My plan is when I finish this job to go back to St Paul's, Bessbrook to be principal [the job he left to take over the three-year role as GAA president],' he said.
'[It's] the place I love, the place I miss, even though this is the best job you could possibly have, that's where I belong anyway. So, thank you for giving me the opportunity to rule that out very clearly.'
A recent Sunday Independent/Ireland Thinks poll showed former European Commissioner Mairead McGuinness came out on top when voters were presented with a list of right-leaning candidates, with 24pc of respondents selecting the Fine Gael politician.
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Some 19pc said they would likely vote for Senator Michael McDowell, who also ruled himself out of a presidential bid last month.
When presented with a list of left-leaning candidates, 14pc of voters said they would likely vote for independent Galway TD Catherine Connolly and 10pc said they would vote for Senator Frances Black, who first tabled the Occupied Territories Bill to ban trade with Israeli entities based in the Occupied Palestinian Territories in 2018.
Speaking to Newstalk last month, Ms Black said she is "98pc" sure she will not contest the election, but remains open to the possibility as she has "a responsibility to consider it".
"There's a part of me that feels if I'm the right person, I'm not sure I am, but if I am the right person, then that's the 2pc. And I do feel I have a responsibility to consider it. That's really what it is. That's all it is."
A number of other figures, who have previously been considered potential candidates or frontrunners in a presidential race, have also ruled themselves out of the contest in recent months, including former Social Protection minister Heather Humphreys, broadcaster Miriam O'Callaghan and Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O'Neill.
Meanwhile, Burns addressed several other topical GAA issues, ranging from Gaelic football's 'radical' new rules to the long-running saga of the proposed redevelopment of Casement Park in Belfast, and the potential appetite for a third-tier football championship.
On the new rules being trialled throughout this year, he said: 'Very, very pleased with it. Jim Gavin deserves so much credit, along with his committee, for what they have done.
'It was very rad ical. It was disruptive. But I think that if you look at the games, it has opened the game out incredibly.
'The one big fear that we had was how it would translate to club level. And now that the club leagues around the country are in full swing, I think it has gone really, really well at club level.
'I'm talking to club referees all the time. They love the fact that the discipline has improved,' he expanded.
'If you just look at a statistic from that. We played the U-20 All-Ireland final two weeks ago between Louth and Tyrone. No red cards. No black cards. No yellow cards. Not even a tick.
'So one of the big advantages from this has been the increase and the improvement in the discipline of the players. We are gradually changing our culture.
'Handing the ball over after you give a free, it doesn't allow for anybody who is in the mood to be disruptive … there is no benefit in doing that any more.'
Burns indicated that there should be greater clarity this week on the future of Antrim's long-derelict 'home' in Casement Park.
'The Irish Government have been really supportive,' he said, 'and right behind us on this and extremely focussed on it, and deserve great credit for the fact that they've already pledged 40 million to it.
'This is the big week because of the June monitoring round, we will know on Wednesday exactly how much if anything that the British government are going to pledge to it.
'We have a (GAA) management meeting on Friday, we are going to discuss then our options, because at that stage we will be in a better position to speculate on exactly what we can build.
'But we are still focussed on building this stadium in Belfast that can hold Ulster finals,' he stressed.
On the subject of a third-tier SFC for counties who might be struggling in the Tailteann Cup, he said they would 'certainly consider' one if there was an appetite around the country.
'We do consultations all the time in the provinces. When we went to the provinces (last year), we found that there was an appetite in Munster for it – but not in Leinster,' the former Armagh player outlined.
'So we're not just ready for that yet. We don't want it to become a glorified Division 4 of the National League, because those teams already see each other.
"And there is a big novelty if a team rocks up against Kildare, let's say, and beats them – or Fermanagh, or some of the teams that you might raise eyebrows at for being in it.
'But these competitions don't lie down, and if you're in the Tailteann Cup you're in it for a reason.'