Quotes from Leo Varadkar

Obviously, nobody likes to read or hear about anyone having a bad experience in our hospitals.

There are a lot of people who want to retain the Eighth Amendment - I don't agree with that view myself - there are others who want to remove it, but when you ask them what that means, they aren't able to tell you.

My job as Taoiseach, and the job of any government, of course, is to represent all people.

Prejudice has no hold in this Republic.

My instinct is to say it as I see it, being a little bit edgy and showing leadership on policy issues.

Part of my mission, if I have that opportunity as leader, is to take Sinn Fein on.

When a hospital isn't under as much pressure, you start to see things slowing down, and it might take five, six, seven days to get the person discharged, and that's the length of stay, so it's all these different factors come into play all the time.

It's one of my government's ambitions to secure a seat for Ireland on the U.N. Security Council so that we can play an even greater role in international affairs and try to build what we all believe in, which is a world of laws.

Around the world, people look to Ireland as a country where it doesn't matter where you come from but where you want to go.

I know when my father travelled 5,000 miles to make his home in Ireland, I doubt he ever dreamed that his son would one day grow up to be its leader.

I would love to believe that my political judgment is impeccable, but it's not.

It's fair to say that the policy and character of my government would be, or the government which I lead, would be very different to that of President Trump.

I have a good social life.

We would only need a bespoke solution for Northern Ireland if Britain leaves the Single Market.

Those of us who are in the centre believe in opening up to the world, believe migration on balance is a good thing if it is managed properly, and believe that multilateralism is the best way to solve problems.

It's the middle class; it's middle Ireland, and it's a group of people who often feel that they contribute a lot to the economy and a lot to society, but maybe they don't get as much back for it as they should.

I have expressed a very strong view that no health minister on their own can turn the health service around.

My difficulty with the whole right-left construct is that I don't think it describes modern politics or the modern choices that people face in the world.

We can't have a government that will collapse in three months.

Marriage in our Constitution is very clear that it's a man marrying a woman, largely with a view to having a natural family, and if they are unable to do that, obviously then they can adopt.

I consider myself pro-life, as I accept that the unborn is a human life with rights, and I do not support abortion on request or on demand.

My opinion has always been that when it comes to deciding where specialist centres should be located, whether they are regional or national specialities, it should be done on clinical grounds.

We really need to come behind and press for marriage equality in Northern Ireland.

What I see around the world are movements around people like Macron in France and Trudeau in Canada.