Independent Senator Frances Black said she has been approached by a number of parties about running in the presidential election and would be open to a conversation about being a candidate.
“My name has been mentioned,” she said. “I have been asked by a couple of the parties. I said I would be open to the conversations.”
Ms Black is a professional folk musician and singer, who already had a high national profile before being elected to the Seanad in 2016. She is a long-time pro-Palestine activist and brought the Occupied Territories Bill before the Oireachtas.
The legislation proposes a ban on goods produced in regions illegally occupied by Israel. The Government has promised to take the Bill forward to enactment – albeit with some as yet unspecified amendments – during this Dáil term.
Of course Conor McGregor was best Irish person the White House could think of inviting on St Patrick’s Day
Yes, Amazon.ie will give Irish shoppers choice. But no, it’s not ‘good news for all’
Man who drank excessive amount of water after hospital procedure died from water intoxication, court hears
Why did Donald Trump bring Conor McGregor to the White House?
She said she was not actively looking for a nomination but was open to the idea.
“I suppose it’s a huge honour, firstly, to even have my name in the hat in the mix,” she said.
Ms Black said she has spoken to Taoiseach Micheál Martin about the progress of the Occupied Territories Bill.
Tánaiste Simon Harris said in the Dáil earlier this month that he would meet her shortly about the Bill but the meeting has yet to take place.
She said she was confident the Bill would still be progressed but expressed concern that it might be watered down.
Following a meeting in the US last week between the Taoiseach and American Jewish groups in Washington, a statement from the American Jewish Committee said Mr Martin had told them the Bill was “no longer on the legislative calendar”.
However, the Taoiseach later clarified that he “categorically” did not tell the group that the Bill had been dropped by Government but did alert them to difficulties with the current draft in terms of its constitutionality.
“I would like to hear from the Tánaiste as to his thinking on the Bill and that of his department. I can only guess that they are talking about dropping services from the Bill. The Programme for Government mentions only goods and not services.
“Until I have that meeting with Mr Harris I really have no idea what the plan is.”
She said that when she met Mr Martin before the election, she did not object to the amendments being suggested then.
“I think there could possibly be a shift in Government policy in that regard because of [the election of President] Trump and maybe because there was a ceasefire but that is gone now.”
