The Green Party should respect the verdict of the Irish people and withdraw from government, Labour Party leader Eamon Gilmore told reporters at the count for the Ireland East constituency at Punchestown, Co Kildare last night.
¿The message for the Greens is: the service that they now can do the country is to take the verdict of the Irish people and to respect it, and respecting it means this government standing down, and they should encourage their coalition partners to do likewise.¿
Asked about relations between Labour and Fine Gael in the light of tensions during the election, particularly in Ireland East, Mr Gilmore said: ¿There¿s always tensions during an election. We compete and we will continue to compete because, as I¿ve said repeatedly, politics in this country is now a three-horse race.
¿It¿s a three-way contest and inevitably in that contest there will be some competition and at times some tension,¿ Mr Gilmore said.