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Taoiseach Leo Varadkar with President of Ireland, Michael D Higgins following the his request to dissolve the 32nd Dail at Aras an Uachtarain. PA Wire/PA Images

The 32nd Dáil has been dissolved by President Michael D Higgins

The general election will be held on 8 February.

THE 32ND DÁIL has today been dissolved by President Michael D Higgins.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar travelled to Áras an Uachtaráin this afternoon to seek the dissolution of the Dáil after calling a general election for Saturday 8 February.

President Higgins signed the proclamation for dissolution shortly after 2 pm.

Speaking to reporters before travelling to Phoenix Park, Varadkar said now is the right time for the country, adding that the next government should be in place by the next EU Summit meeting on Brexit. 

“We have a deal on Brexit and Northern Ireland. Our economy has never been stronger, there are more people at work than ever before, incomes are rising, poverty is falling and the public finances are back in order. 

“As a nation we have every reason to be hopeful and positive about the future.”

The President of Ireland has the power to dissolve the Dáil so that a general election can be held.

general-election-ireland-2020 PA Wire / PA Images PA Wire / PA Images / PA Images

Today, the president issued a proclamation dissolving the Dáil, which means a general election must be held within 30 days.

The Constitution sets out that once the proclamation is issued, the Clerk of the Dáil issues a writ to the returning officer in each constituency directing them to hold an election of the prescribed number of members. 

With the election date now known, the campaigning is well and truly underway, with election posters already being erected on poles around the country, including in Varadkar’s own constituency where canvassers were spotted hanging posters for the Taoiseach in Castleknock.

Varadkar was also quick to tweet out a campaign video before heading to see the president this afternoon. 

Preparations for this election have been happening for some time, with politcal parties having their election slogans ready to go once the starting pistol was fired. 

Fine Gael has decided to go with “A Future to Look Forward To” as their election mantra, while Fianna Fáil have opted for “An Ireland for All”. 

Whatever way this election turns out, you can expect to hear a lot of those sayings in the weeks ahead.

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    Mute See My Vest
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    Aug 21st 2014, 3:59 PM

    If you want something kept private then don’t put it online. Least of all on social media. Users need to take some responsibility for the volume of personal information they happily put on the internet.

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    Mute Neal Ireland Hello
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    Aug 21st 2014, 4:09 PM

    It’s a little more complicated than that.

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    Mute David Kearney
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    Aug 21st 2014, 4:19 PM

    No it really isn’t. If its private don’t put it online. No need to blame Facebook for peoples need to blab.

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    Mute The Throwaway
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    Aug 21st 2014, 4:23 PM

    It isn’t solely what people put up online.
    It’s about Facebook tracking your online habits, the sites you visit. Your GPS tracking data through your smart phone is also used. And it’s about the right of that company to sell people’s data on to third parties.

    So it is a little bit more complicated than that.

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    Mute See My Vest
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    Aug 21st 2014, 5:49 PM

    Everything tracks your online habits not just Facebook as for the GPS tracking, if people didn’t freely tag themselves in every movie theatre, sporting event and restaraunt they visit then you might have a point. I’ve seen people gag themselves watching movies at “my comfy couch”

    Online privacy is never going to happen. The sooner people realise that and adjust the information they share accordingly, the sooner we’ll all be safer “on our comfy couches”

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    Mute David Kearney
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    Aug 21st 2014, 6:51 PM

    Still, everything they track you put online or someone did because its interesting. Either way its never private and banning it online is just backwards.

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    Mute Petra Madill
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    Aug 21st 2014, 7:12 PM

    Checking in at your home address or any other private home address always seemed unbelievably stupid….. There’s even a b

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    Mute Petra Madill
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    Aug 21st 2014, 7:12 PM

    There’s even a bloody map

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    Mute Richard Cynical
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    Aug 21st 2014, 3:49 PM

    Everybody delete your Facebook!

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    Mute Pinel G
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    Aug 21st 2014, 4:14 PM

    i challenge anyone to delete all their private messages, comments, and friends on Facebook. then delete your account…Under Section 3 of the Data Protection Acts, you have a right to find out, free of charge, if a person (an individual or an organization) holds information about you. write to Facebook and ask them for everything they have on file about you within 21days you will be surprised to see that all these private messages, comments, friends and all other information will be pages long nothing is deleted from Facebook you may think its gone!!

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    Mute Phil O' Meara
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    Aug 21st 2014, 3:57 PM

    *Like*

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