Taoiseach Simon Harris has called on coalition government parties “not to rewrite history” by attacking each other during the election campaign.

He was speaking after Fianna Fail justice spokesman Jim O’Callaghan said the Justice Department needed “new scrutiny and political direction” after 14 years with a minister of Fine Gael.

Mr O’Callaghan said there was a “question mark” over whether Fine Gael was the party of law and order, as he used the party’s election slogan to criticize its record in matters of justice.

The first week of the election campaign saw the coalition’s two largest parties publicly clash, with Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin saying he was surprised by the tone of Fine Gael’s attacks.

On Friday morning, Fine Gael Justice Minister Helen McEntee hit back when asked about Mr O’Callaghan’s suggestion that she had adopted a series of proposals on public order and immigration that he had advanced.

“I think there are probably women across the country who will understand what it’s like when men try to claim credit for their work,” she told reporters in Dublin on Friday.

Speaking at the upcoming launch of Fianna Fail’s crime-fighting proposals, Mr O’Callaghan said the Justice Department needed “new energy” – which has been a campaign slogan of Fine Gael.

“I think it would have been different and sometimes political emphasis or direction has a real impact on a ministry,” he said.

“Look at housing, and look at what Eoghan Murphy (former Fine Gael housing minister) said when he was in the ministry, you can have a well-meaning minister, but unless you have the political focus and the political support behind you to make changes. , it won’t happen.

“I think if we had had the full-fledged Department of Justice, I think we would have seen greater progress in the area of ​​justice.

“I think that’s part of the reason Michael (Martin) indicated that if it’s negotiations, if people put us in the position where we can go into government, that’s one portfolios that we would be interested in pursuing. »

Asked if Ms McEntee was an “ineffective” justice minister, Mr O’Callaghan said he would not personalize his criticism.

He said: “I’m not going to personalize this at all to Minister McEntee or any Fine Gael minister, but let’s recognize the statistics.

“The Ministry of Justice has been under Fine Gael control for almost 14 years, and although there has been progress in many, many other areas over the last four years, I think the questions that arise at the Department of Justice over the last 14 years are growing in many ways.

“So I’m not going to personalize this based on Minister McEntee, but I think there is a benefit to helping the Department of Justice under new political control and direction, because it really needs a new energy within this ministry.”

Speaking in Co Clare, Mr Harris said he did not want to get into a “tit for tat” with his coalition partners and insisted the government parties had worked well together.

The Taoiseach said: “We have worked well together for four and a half years, we have presented five budgets.

“We didn’t do everything well, we did a lot of things well, there are other areas we need to do better.

“We cannot find ourselves in a situation where people who were in government, sitting around the Cabinet table, who effectively had a veto on any decision, are now saying that this ministry was not under our control .

“This is not how collective cabinet responsibility works.”

Mr Harris added: “There has been a Fianna Fail taoiseach for two and a half years of the life of this government.

“There has been a Fianna Fail taoiseach or tanaist for the duration of this government and the reverse is also true of Fine Gael.

“My experience of four and a half years in government, we should not rewrite history, has been constructive engagement between three distinct parties.

“Helen was ready to become a minister. She arrived, put her shoulder on the steering wheel.

“Helen McEntee doesn’t need to accept anyone’s ideas.”