The leaders of Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, and the Green Party have agreed on a draft programme of government, with the next Taoiseach yet to be officially confirmed.
ADVERTISEMENTFianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Green Party are set to form the next Irish government, with all three parties agreeing on a programme of government this afternoon.
Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael formed a political framework in April although both parties failed to win enough seats in the February election to hold an absolute majority in the Dáil, the lower chamber of the Irish parliament.
Government formation talks intensified over the past few weeks after the Green Party entered negotiations as a minority partner.
Once the document, known as “Our Shared Future,” is signed off by parliamentary members of each party, the next prime minister, or Taoiseach, will be confirmed with the three parties entering into a coalition.
People across Ireland headed to the polls in February in an election that saw a significant political shakeup, with Sinn Féin, traditionally in a minority on the opposition benches, winning most first-preference votes.
Both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael saw a slump in support which led to the two, who are historic rivals, holding coalition-building talks for the first time in the parties' history.