Two political dynasties fight for bragging rights
Coveney and Cowen’s working relationship is central to the operation and survival of the Government,
THE dynamic between Housing Minister Simon Coveney and his Fianna Fail counterpart Barry Cowen is arguably the most important but unquestionably the most intriguing relationship within the Fine Gael-led minority Government.
They are senior figures in their respective parties and both hail from Irish political dynasties but the similarities end there.
The Housing Minister is an heir to the Coveney merchant empire in Cork. His father was Hugh Coveney, a former Fine Gael minister, who, the Moriarty Tribunal, heard held a bank account in the Cayman Islands.
Barry Cowen, on the other hand, is the son of Ber Cowen — a former Fianna Fail TD who also ran a pub and funeral home in Clara, Co Offaly. Barry’s elder brother is the former Fianna Fail leader and controversial Taoiseach Brian Cowen.
Simon was schooled by and played rugby for the prestigious Clongowes Wood College in Kildare before going on to study farming in the Royal Agricultural College in Gloucestershire, UK.
Like Coveney, Cowen also went to a private secondary school but in the Fianna Fail TD’s case, it was the Cistercian College in Roscrea, Co Tipperary. His third-level education was gained through the Athlone Institute of Technology.
Coveney’s summers were spent on the family yacht christened the Golden Apple of the Sun, and the Dail register of members’ interests shows he has shares in not one but two private wealth funds.
Cowen’s non-political passions are GAA football and golf, and the Dail register simply notes his family home in Clara.
After talks with his Fianna Fail shadow broke down at around midnight on Wednesday, Coveney stayed in Leinster House for another two hours, working with officials. Cowen went for a few pints with his colleagues.
It’s fair to say both men come from different backgrounds. However, due to the unique nature of the current administration and the central issues facing the country, the two politicians have found themselves entwined in a relationship which provides the backbone of the minority Government.
Personally and politically, there is a lot on the line for both men. Cowen is a leading figure in his party and has in the past expressed an interest in following in his brother’s footsteps. There is no immediate vacancy in Fianna Fail, so there is less pressure on him.
Coveney is all but in campaign mode in preparation for the departure of Enda Kenny as Fine Gael leader. Every move he makes is seen in the context of his ambition to defeat the increasingly popular Social Protection Minister Leo Varadkar to become party leader.
Coveney and Cowen both carry the weight of their parties on their shoulders, as the housing and water policies they oversee will be to the fore of voters’ minds ahead of the next election.
There’s near-weekly contact between them, or at least representatives from both camps try to keep each side informed of the other’s movements.
Collegial is the word most commonly used to describe their relationship but they certainly do not trust each other. They have almost weekly battles, whether it is on the floor of the Dail or on the airwaves. But there are never any hard feelings between them after they air their problems in public, and neither TD takes the cut and thrust of politics to heart.
But you would imagine Cowen still remembers it was Coveney who publicly suggested his brother sounded hung-over during an interview on the morning after a Fianna Fail think-in.
Nonetheless, they have what you could call a functioning working relationship in an increasingly dysfunctional Government.
This close relationship naturally leads to complaints from Fine Gael TDs, who believe Cowen has more access to the Housing Minister than they do. This may not sit well with the average Fine Gael backbencher but a close working relationship between these two political heavyweights is vital to the survival of the Government. For the last two years, the housing crisis and water charges fiasco have been constant political debates. The fate and reputation of the Government lives or dies by how it solves these two problems.
Responsibility for finding a solution for these issues falls under Coveney’s brief.
Coveney had not been appointed as Housing Minister during Government formation talks but it was still he and Cowen who thrashed out the current pathway for dealing with water charges.
Cowen and Fianna Fail undoubtedly made most of the ground in that particular battle as Fine Gael conceded to the suspension of charges pending the outcome of the convoluted process which will ultimately abolish water bills forever.
Fine Gael was bruised by this and Coveney didn’t help himself by opening negotiations live on RTE’s
Prime Time. During the talks, Fianna Fail also insisted that the Government should increase rent supplements if it was to receive Micheal Martin’s support. Fine Gael initially resisted, then caved when the allure of office and ministerial cars proved too much.
Since then a pattern has developed which has seen Coveney forced into a corner by Cowen on a number of occasions. Take the appointment of the chair of the expert commission on water charges, Joe O’Toole.
You will remember O’Toole decided to tell the country he believed people should pay their water charges not long after he was appointed to oversee the independent expert group’s report on water. Not a very bipartisan view given the sensitivity of the issue at stake. Despite his comment, O’Toole did receive Coveney’s backing and might have remained on as chair if Cowen did not issue a statement insisting Fianna Fail could no longer support his candidacy given the remarks. One-nil Cowen.
Then there was the first-time buyers’ scheme which was meant to be the centrepiece of the Government’s first Budget. It was also drafted by Coveney’s department and fed into his Rebuilding Ireland project. The cap for receiving a 5pc rebate on the sale price of a newly built house was originally set at €600,000 and would see new homeowners who spent this amount receive as much as €20,000 from the State.
Cowen was having none of it and insisted the high rate at which the cap was set amounted to a mansion tax and that the grant should only apply to a house that cost €400,000 or less. Coveney again caved and they split the difference by reducing the cap to €500,000. Two-nil Cowen.
But last week, when they faced off over the rent plan, Coveney was prepared. Cowen predictably kicked up over towns outside Dublin and Cork not being covered by the rent control measures. Coveney hit back by dazzling him with science and a promise that other areas of the country will be included in the scheme in time. Cowen buckled. It may have been down to a lack of support from the upper ranks of Fianna Fail or maybe it was a show of goodwill at Christmas. Either way, Coveney’s name is on the scoreboard.
They will clash again once the Oireachtas commission on water charges publishes its report, and when that happens they could be playing for keeps. The Dail vote on the report will finally bring to an end the most divisive political issue of our time and two of our most formidable politicians will want to be on the right side of history.
‘Collegial is the word most used to describe them but they do not trust each other’