FG minister: A deal with Sinn Fein? Not on your life
Regina Doherty SOCIAL Protection Minister Regina Doherty yesterday vowed not to go into government with Sinn Fein – despite saying there are “some incredible people in the party” just two months ago.
She slammed the party’s republican legacy, saying she would never support a coalition.
The Fine Gael TD told Today with Miriam O’callaghan: “Not on your life.” The U-turn comes after previously saying she was open to a deal with the party.
She told the Sunday Independent: “There are some incredible people in Sinn Fein; incredibly smart, articulate, thoughtful and could I work with them? Of course I could, yeah.”
But yesterday her only praise for the party was that their leader is a woman. She said: “It’s nice to see Mary Lou doing well and I only say that because she is a female politician, it’s not because of the policies she is advancing.
“For me personally the legacy that they honour, that they adore and that they still pay tribute to isn’t something that I want anything to do with and that’s the be all and end all for me.”
Fine Gael is expected to thrash out its position on a potential deal with Sinn Fein during the six-week summer break. Lynn, left, and Orla