Simon Harris becomes Ireland’s youngest-ever prime minister, first without a college degree

Simon Harris was sworn in as prime minister of Ireland on Tuesday, becoming the youngest-ever holder of the position at the age of 37, but also the first without an undergraduate degree from a higher education institution, according to Reuters.

Harris, who previously served as Minister for Higher Education and then for Health, is most known in Ireland for his handling of the initial response to the COVID-19 pandemic. He was elected leader of the center-right Fine Gael party last month, following the unexpected resignation of former Prime Minister Leo Varadkar.

Varadkar led Ireland from 2017, when he became the country’s first openly gay prime minister. At the age of 38 at that time, he himself set a record for the youngest person elected to lead the country.

Reuters notes that his successor will face the same systemic issues that marked Varadkar’s last years in office: a severe shortage of affordable housing and a record number of asylum seekers amid the war in Ukraine.

Indeed, Varadkar’s government announced several measures late last year aimed at reducing the influx of asylum seekers.

Harris will inherit a governing coalition of three parties united by an agreement that leaves the new prime minister little room for maneuver in terms of new initiatives.

However, he is expected to announce a government reshuffle of the current 18 ministries on Tuesday. It is currently only known that the current ministers of foreign affairs and finance, Micheal Martin and Michael McGrath, will not be part of the new cabinet.

Simon Harris said he had a “bizarre” career path
Harris, who dropped out of college at the age of 20 to accept a political advisor position, was elected to the Irish parliament at the age of 24 and appointed to his first ministerial position before turning 30.

In an interview in January 2022, while serving as Minister for Higher Education, Research and Innovation, he admitted that his career path had been “in many ways a bit bizarre”.

He studied journalism and French at Dublin Institute of Technology. “It’s a four-year degree program, but after about three years an opportunity arose to get more involved in politics. It was one I simply couldn’t let pass as I saw an opportunity to try and change things,” he explained.

Harris claimed two years ago that he had completed some courses along the way, but still had work to do in that regard.

The new Irish prime minister promises to solve the housing crisis
In a speech delivered on Sunday at the annual Fine Gael conference, he emphasized that the priorities of his term will be ensuring public safety and order, assisting small businesses, and reconnecting with rural voters.

He also promised to “once and for all” resolve the housing crisis, something his predecessors also pledged. Harris said in this regard that he will extend support to property developers and first-time homebuyers.

However, he admitted that it will take years to address the supply-side issues. A poll published on the same day he spoke about resolving the housing crisis showed that this remains the most pressing issue for the Irish people.

Official data released on Monday showed that asking prices for homes in Ireland rose by 6.5% in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the same period last year.