Mary Regan: Kenny moves the succession goal posts

Taoiseach shuffles pack of potential young gun pretenders to his throne

Simon Coveney and Leo Varadkar

A s he arrived in the Dáil chamber shortly before two o’clock last Friday afternoon - with the Independent Alliance members following one-by-one in tow - Simon Coveney must have felt confident that his few small steps down the blue-carpeted stairs of the Chamber was one bigger leap forward towards his leadership goal.

Enda Kenny had sat with a nervous expression for almost two hours while the political equivalent of the bridal car’s ...