Tánaiste Leo Varadkar has been labelled as ''tone deaf'' by his former colleague Kate O'Connell for his appearance at the Mighty Hoopla festival over the weekend in London.
Many on social media were outraged by Mr Varadkar's attendance at the festival, with outdoor concerts and indoor events still capped on attendances in Ireland.
And the ex-Fine Gael TD for Dublin Bay South Kate O'Connell hit out at the Tánaiste while appearing on RTE radio on Sunday morning.
Speaking on the Brendan O'Connor, O'Connell said: "I do think that the pictures, to my mind, show a serious lack of self-awareness.
"I think the week that’s in it and I think if you’re a policymaker making decisions that are affecting all of our lives, and then you leave the country within which you make those decisions for to have your jolly elsewhere, I think it’s jarring.
“I think it was completely tone-deaf.
“It just doesn’t really correlate with what people are feeling or the way people are living right now in Ireland.”
A spokesperson for Varadkar has said: "The Tanaiste is a strong supporter of the Irish events industry and nearly €100m has been provided to the entertainment sector during the pandemic.”
This year’s Mighty Hoopla festival had a line-up of Cheryl Cole, Becky Hill and Alexandra Burke.
