Opposition (and rural FG rump) will scupper plan

TAOISEACH Leo Varadkar and Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe will have to undertake a series of ‘humiliating U-turns’ if they want to get two national planning strategies through, the Opposition warned.

Controversy is growing over the National Planning Framework (NPF) and Mr Donohoe’s national spatial strategy as he and Mr Varadkar deal with an open revolt from elements of the Cabinet and Fine Gael back-benchers.

However, united opposition to the plan from Fianna Fáil, Sinn Féin, Labour and Independent TDs forged by Alan Kelly and Michael Fitzmaurice poses a far more existential threat to the minority Government’s survival.

The Cabinet will tomorrow hold a special meeting on the NPF, but Mr Kelly told the Irish Mail on Sunday: ‘The Cabinet are talking about history. That plan is dead. The Government don’t have the numbers, even amongst its own, to get it through’’.

Mr Kelly also warned Mr Donohoe ‘can put his spatial strategy in the bin too, that is joined at the hip to the NPF: if one goes both go’. He added: ‘Our coalition will ensure neither plan will get through.

‘Paschal will have no goodies to give out, he will not have a capital plan unless he shreds the current version.’

Mr Kelly also warned: ‘The rural revolt against the NPF will be worse than water charges. Rural Ireland will revolt against a plan that bears the hallmarks of something devised by six Dublin ministers.

‘Rural Ireland is not exactly a forte of Eoghan Murphy or the rest – they have completely underestimated how serious this is.

‘Towns smaller than 10,000 might as well simply turn out the lights.

‘There will be such a flight from the country within a decade only four counties will be able to field a GAA team.’