The Fine Gael TD made the suggestion in the Dáil this week as he recounted experiences he had while canvassing for the recent local and European elections.

It comes a day after Eamon Ryan said he would be stepping down as party leader.

According to a number of sources, an alliance has been agreed between Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, the Green Party and the Labour Party

Despite Taoiseach Simon Harris insisting the Government will serve its full term to March 2025, November remains the most likely time for the next general election, according to former minister for agriculture Ivan Yates

Here, we have a look at the topics likely to dominate political debate in the week to come

These interactive maps show where the parties performed best in the latest elections

Macroom was the only electoral area that returned the same slate of elected members as it had in 2019

‘We won’t be told by anyone else how to do our elections,’ Taoiseach Simon Harris said

Fine Gael city councillor Shane O’Callaghan, who topped the poll in Cork City South Central, has announced he too intends to seek his party’s nomination when the Government decides to go to the country.

Fianna Fáil has doubled its presence in the European Parliament

A former Fine Gael MEP and current EU Commissioner has defended Nina Carberry after she was criticised for her apparent absence in big debates and her ‘celebrity status’

Heading into the weekend, the only thing that could be said for certain was that the ward would have at least one new face to fill the seat of veteran Independent councillor Mick Finn

Sinn Fein are still in a battle to gain a European Parliament seat, as counting continues in two of three constituencies.

Art O’Leary explained that such action would ultimately involve education, information and public engagement.

Nine of Ireland’s 14 European Parliamentary seats remain unfilled

Two sitting councillors lost out in this LEA

An Coimisiún Toghcháin, Ireland’s independent Electoral Commission, has welcomed a 29 per cent reduction in the level of spoilt votes seen in the local and European elections

The 14th count results for Midlands North-West constituency saw the elimination of Independent candidate Peter Casey with 28497 votes.

It was a nailbiter for the final seat

At 10.20pm on Saturday, the first count for the Mallow LEA was announced and saw the re-election of three sitting councillors

Michelle Gildernew is one of 27 candidates who contested the massive 15-county constituency.

Simon Harris took aim at Sinn Féin’s results during the elections

Independent TD Michael McNamara, Sinn Féin’s Kathleen Funchion, the Green Party’s Grace O’Sullivan and Independent Mick Wallace are also in the mix for a seat in the constituency

The second count of the Ireland South constituency got underway this morning following Fine Gael MEP Seán Kelly’s re-election to the European Parliament on Monday evening

When the dust settled on City Hall in the small hours of yesterday morning, Fianna Fáil had nine seats, up two, Fine Gael five, down two, Sinn Féin four, no change, Independents four, down two, and the Greens three, no change

One candidate told The Echo that he had enjoyed the canvass, but had learned some lessons while going from door to door. “An old man once told me that half the people are lying to you, and the other half may not be telling the truth,” he said.

Jack Chambers said their lacklustre performance was not a ‘failure of electoral strategy’ but a rejection of the party’s offering.

Honore Kamegni was one of several candidates from migrant backgrounds to be successful in Ireland’s local elections

Compare this year's results with the 2019 election and get further detail on the vote share in your area

The Sinn Féin leader acknowledged her party need to prioritise ‘clarity’ on its messaging after a poor performance in Ireland’s local elections

Sinn Féin's disappointing performance in the local elections has been the major talking point in Ireland

While Sinn Féin will be sitting down to take stock after disappointing local election results, they continue to lead the way when it comes to social media following

The eleventh count in the electoral area had resulted in a final tally for Fianna Fáil Dominic Finn of 1376 votes, seven ahead of Clíona Halloran of the Green Party

Six councillors have been elected on the northside west.

The municipal district has six seats

Billy Kelleher said that people considered alternatives to the coalition government parties and “rejected them resoundingly”

Tánaiste Micheál Martin said the Coalition was staying focused on the budget later this year

Find out which parties got the highest vote share in your area

Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have said that while their strong performances in the local elections will give them a strong base to build on going into a general election campaign, they will treat a general election as a clean sheet.

A number of young candidates had their names on the ballot papers

A look back at the count in City Hall yesterday

In a passionate speech following his election to the South East ward Peter Horgan paid tribute to councillor John Maher who easily retained his seat in the Nort East ward.

All the latest news and results from the European and Local Election counts across Ireland

The Tánaiste reiterated his intention that he would like to see the government run its full term when questioned on the issue at City Hall at the weekend.

The former lord mayor thanked the people of the north-west for their votes, and his family and political party for their support.

All councillors are now elected on Cork city's southside

All councillors in both the North East and North West wards have now been elected

Find out which parties got the highest vote share in your area

The leader of Sinn Fein said she was ‘sorry’ that her candidates did not perform better.

“Disappointed, but that’s the way its goes,” she said speaking to The Echo after she was eliminated on the sixth count.