Tony Kett: his death has left seat vacant

The Green Party will seek one of the two vacant Seanad seats which are expected to be filled in the coming weeks, ahead of the Oireachtas summer recess.

Two of the 60 seats in the Seanad are vacant following the death of Fianna Fáil's Tony Kett in April and last week's election of Labour senator Alan Kelly as an MEP.

As only current members of the Oireachtas can vote in Seanad by-elections and the government has a majority in both houses, both seats will be filled with government candidates.

A Green Party spokesman said that the issue has yet to be discussed by the party but it is understood that the appointment of one of the party's defeated councillors to the Seanad would give the Greens a 'compensation' gesture after the local election drubbing.

Former Galway mayor Niall Ó Brolcháin or former Fingal county councillor Joe Corr would be likely contenders for any Green seat in the Seanad, beside the party's sitting senators Deirdre de Burca and Dan Boyle. As Ó Brolcháin is viewed within the party as a potential malcontent, a Seanad seat could appease him and keep his chances of a Dáil seat alive.

No date has been set for the Seanad by-elections but it would make sense from the government's point of view and from a Seanad voting perspective to fill the seats before the Dáil and Seanad recess in July.

A number of Fianna Fáil names have been connected with the two positions in recent days. Michael Smith Jnr, whose father Michael was a minister, former Dublin MEP Eoin Ryan and the party's Dublin Euro candidate Eibhlín Byrne are among the names mentioned, as have Cavan councillor Shane P O'Reilly and Meath councillor Nick Killian from Dunshaughlin.

The late Seamus Brennan's son Shay, who was defeated by George Lee in the Dublin South by-election, and Dublin Central councillor Mary Fitzpatrick have also been speculated upon.