Taoiseach Micheál Martin is likely to announce a replacement for former junior minister Robert Troy this week, with the appointment approved by the Cabinet when it holds its first meeting after the August break on Wednesday.
Senior Fianna Fáil figures say they expect Mr Martin to nominate Mayo TD Dara Calleary to the role, though it is understood no final decision has yet been made.
It would mark a return to office for Mr Calleary who resigned as minister for agriculture after attending the Oireachtas Golf Society dinner in Clifden, which was accused to breaking lockdown rules, in August of 2020.
Mr Calleary was among a number of high-profile resignations after the event, though the organisers of the dinner were acquitted of any breach of the law in a District Court case earlier this year.
Speculation has been rife about Mr Troy’s replacement since his resignation last week following controversy over his failure to declare property holdings in the Dáil register of interests.
Other potential appointees in the frame are said to be Kildare TD James Lawless, Tipperary TD Jackie Cahill and Dublin TD Paul McAuliffe, while the names of Senators Lisa Chambers and Malcolm Byrne and TDs Christopher O’Sullivan and Cormac Devlin have also been floated.
Mr Calleary’s appointment would be popular in the party, sources say, as he was perceived to have been somewhat hard done by his 2020 resignation, especially since the acquittal of the organisers this year.
He is a popular figure in the party organisation, and also well liked by his colleagues in the parliamentary party.
