Best laid plans for ‘good news’ scuppered by unexpected rebel

HOUSING Minister Eoghan Murphy loves a bit of news management, so when one of his colleagues issues a press statement describing his latest big reveal as “not good news” something is wrong.

Of all the ministers in this government, Catherine Byrne would not have been high on the list of troublemakers. Fine Gael TDs see her as an earnest and hard-working minister who rarely rocks the boat.

Ms Byrne is not famed for publicspeaking so when she took the podium in Inchicore yesterday, Mr Murphy’s biggest fear was probably that her contribution would drag on a bit.

Instead she described the glossy announcement as “the wrong decision at the wrong time”. She later doubled down by issuing a press release saying the “size and scale this project represents overdevelopment”.

Mr Murphy and Dublin City Council officials had briefed Ms Byrne on the development ahead of the well-flagged launch, which makes her decision to hijack the event all the more surprising.

She explained that Inchicore, where she has lived all her life, “is a fantastic place” but now largely void of shops and cafés.

“We have no bank, a large number of of fast-food outlets, and too many vacant units,” Ms Byrne said, adding that crime and anti-social behaviour were “serious issues”.

It’s hard to see where this plan can go from here because Ms Byrne has just made it a major election issue for her constituents. She can take the side of the Government or her neighbours.

Opponents will no doubt claim that was her aim while supporters will say it’s a case of real representation.

Either way, Ms Byrne is definitely off Eoghan Murphy’s Christmas card list.