Fianna Fáil is eyeing up Cabinet roles for Collins and O’Callaghan
FIANNA Fáil has set its early sights on two high-profile positions in the expected Cabinet with Fine Gael.
The party’s justice spokesperson Jim O’Callaghan is believed to be in line for the role of attorney general, while Fianna Fáil also has designs on the post of chief whip for Niall Collins.
Mr O’Callaghan’s star appears to have fallen in the wake of post-election speculation that he would be the ‘Dublin’ alternative to leader Micheál Martin. However, a party source conceded: ‘He is too big a beast to have patrolling around the
‘He’s too big for the backbenches’
backbenches with nothing to keep him occupied and he is a little too posh to be made junior minister for social welfare.’
The attorney general is the government’s chief legal adviser and sits in on all Cabinet meetings. And in a move that would provide Ireland with its most politicised attorney general since Michael McDowell in the second Bertie Ahern administration, Mr O’Callaghan, a barrister, may land the post.
One FF source said it would ‘represent a free hit. A sort of bonus position.’ A more cynical source noted: ‘It gets him in the Cabinet door with a big title and a salved ego, the new Mc Dowell for Dublin Bay South and keeps more of the good jobs for us. It works for us.’
Fianna Fáil sources say the party is also determined to secure a Cabinet job for Niall Collins who remains an influential party figure despite the Votegate controversy, where he admitted to voting on behalf of party colleague Timmy Dooley in the Dáil.
‘Collins is the Fianna Fáil strongman in the midwest and, critically, he has the temperament and the local knowledge to deal with fellows like the Healy-Raes,’ one FF insider said. ‘The critical issue in the next government is to manage the rural Independents. Fine Gael’s track-record is not too good there to put it mildly.’
Significantly, the chief whip also sits in Cabinet.
There is also a belief Mr Collins will be in Cabinet as he has been on the right side of social issues. ‘Niall was director of elections for the equality referendum and he was a high profile supporter of reform of the abortion laws – something that did him no favours locally. But his honesty was a huge help to that campaign... He is extremely popular among the members, nationally. He will be pivotal in bringing this deal over the line and they will have to give him something. He is a possibility for chief whip or even foreign affairs.’
But unease is growing within the Fianna Fáil ranks over its other selections for Cabinet, with some high-profile names on course to miss out. It is expected the FF ministerial team will, depending on availability, consist of Barry Cowen, Michael McGrath, Dara Calleary, Darragh O’Brien, Thomas Byrne and Anne Rabbitte.
One senior party source noted that there would be a lot of disappointed TDs, adding that
Stephen Donnelly did not join from the Social Democrats to be a backbench TD, while Robert Troy and Jack Chambers may not be impressed.
And Niamh Smyth and Mary Butler might wonder why Ms Rabbitte made it in ahead of them.
On the Fine Gael side, it is expected that Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe will retain a ministerial seat – although not his two current departments – as will Education Minister Joe McHugh.
An FG source said: ‘The problem with Paschal is that he is not the man for the times. We should be getting as much free money as fast as we can get it, but he is not the man to do it. He is a fiscal goody-two-shoes in an age of pirates.’