‘It’s very difficult to protect’ – Taoiseach told to move out of Wicklow home
The Taoiseach has been advised to move out of his Wicklow home for security reasons. Gardaí are increasingly concerned about the number of threats against Simon Harris and want him and his young family to take up residence in Farmleigh House in the Phoenix Park. Once owned by the Guinness family, it was bought by the State in 1999 and over the years various Taoisigh have stayed there on a temporary basis. “Depending on need, it has been used quite often in the past,” Irish Daily Mail Political Editor John Lee told The Pat Kenny Show. “Simon Harris hasn’t had the opportunity or need to use it often – he lives near enough to Dublin in Greystones. “Quite a number of sources across Government have told me that they are pretty adamant now that they want him to move there permanently in his term as Taoiseach.” Mr Harris has previously had masked men demonstrate outside his house while his wife was putting the children to bed. As Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar usually stayed in his own home but Mr Harris’ house is considered to be more exposed than his predecessor’s. “It was felt that the house in Greystones, a newly built house in an estate, surrounded by other houses and gardens was just extremely difficult for the Gardaí to protect properly,” Mr Lee said. “Just in comparison to previous Taoisigh and Ministers for Justice, they just found it very difficult and we then had something that was a watershed for Mr Harris and his family – there was a bomb threat to his house.” Other politicians have also had protestors gather outside their homes and TDs are increasingly concerned about their personal safety. “Politicians are under threat and it’s cross-party,” Mr Lee said. “Last week, we had Mary Lou McDonald report a very serious death threat to the Gardaí. “We’ve had a complete change in the authorities’ attitudes to threats to politicians.” Mr Lee noted this all comes at a time when a former US President was nearly assassinated and two British MPs have been murdered since 2016. He also said his political sources believe a “round of arrests would do no harm” and had noted approvingly that a woman who threw a milkshake at Nigel Farage last month had been quickly detained afterwards by British police. Credit to : Newstalk