McGuinness ‘not fit to be president’

Former IRA commander Martin McGuinness is not a suitable candidate for Ireland’s presidency because he snubbed a dinner date with Britain’s Queen Elizabeth, a senior Irish government minister said yesterday.

Mr McGuinness’ entry into Ireland’s presidential race has electrified a dull campaign and created a headache for the two governing political parties who fear their own candidates will lose out and the image of the country will be tarnished if he wins the largely ceremonial role.

His failure to attend a Dublin Castle banquet in honour of the Queen in May was viewed as a mistake after she delivered a powerful speech of reconciliation.

Ireland’s current president, Northern Ireland-born Mary McAleese, championed the visit, the first by a British monarch in nearly 100 years.

Justice minister Alan Shatter said: “In the context of his capacity to be a reconciling force across the whole island of Ireland I think his particular failure to embrace the Queen’s visit… his failure to turn up in Dublin Castle… indicates that he is not an appropriate person to be our president.”