Sinn Féin’s confidence gamble will hurt party, say ministers
Cabinet glee as SF motion described as ‘major political error’ and sources within the opposition party want focus back on housing
SENIOR Coalition figures from all three parties have told the Irish Mail on Sunday they will back under-pressure Justice Minister Helen McEntee and Garda Commissioner Drew Harris – but the inevitable further disorder has to be dealt with at a far higher level than before.
The Coalition has been galvanised by what Cabinet sources said was a ‘major political error’ by Sinn Féin in tabling a motion of no confidence in the justice minister – and a poor week all around by the main opposition party.
Senior Sinn Féin TDs have conceded to the Irish Mail on Sunday that they believe the party has acted ‘in error’, under pressure from extreme elements in their own movement, by making justice a central issue at a time when they should be capitalising on growing popularity.
‘We are backing the minister for justice for now,’ said a Cabinet source. ‘But, of course, that is contingent on events, for what we saw the week before last will happen again, and if the Department of Justice and the gardaí are as ill-prepared as they were that time we are going to have to review.
‘But this is in fact a political opportunity for Helen McEntee as she is going to get cross-Government support for things that can be done quickly and that until recently
‘Sinn Féin is completely exposed and stretched’
might have been opposed by the more liberal elements of the Government.’
Cabinet sources say that the Green Party has now ‘quietly’ dropped its opposition to the facial recognition aspects of Garda body cameras. Ministers also say Ms McEntee will get support for lengthening sentences for crimes.
Ministers, with a small number of dissenting voices, have expressed support for Ms McEntee and Mr Harris, with many citing the qualification of ‘events’.
A Cabinet minister said: ‘Events will dictate the gravity and continuance of that support.
‘If there is a repetition of what happened on O’Connell Street in the near future they may both see that support seep away.’
A senior Cabinet source said that they were ‘strongly behind the justice minister’.
‘This is not the time to politically undermine the minister for justice. Sure that would be perceived as siding with the forces of disorder.’
Ministers have also gauged the stance of constituents.
‘The commissioner is in good shape still. We are behind him,’ said a senior Cabinet source. ‘My sense is the public wants to back the guards; I’m not sure they distinguish between gardaí, Garda management and the Garda Commissioner in the way we insiders do. They want to back the guards in that unified sense, and so do we.’
Ministers are fearful that public order problems are more likely to emerge after the Christmas period.
‘Right now, we have piled up the garda presence with the aid of overtime and additional hours,’ said a Cabinet source. ‘That can only continue for so long. It’s when we get back to normal, so to speak, that the problems will emerge.
‘It’s inevitable an incident will happen. The country and our cities are tense. So if something happens – who knows what the spark could be? – we have to be prepared. If there are failings there will be a price to pay,’ they added.
There was one dissenting voice in the Cabinet briefings the MoS received. This minister said that Ms McEntee should consider easing Mr Harris out in a ‘timely fashion’.
They said: ‘She should get him out, sometime in the New Year. It’s something that needs to be done,’ However, this minister is an isolated voice.
Coalition parties believe that Sinn Féin has been forced by internal pressures to ‘go hard’ on justice, even though many of the more centrist elements of the party understand that it is a mistake.
A Sinn Féin TD told the Mail: ‘I don’t believe that tabling a motion of confidence on the justice minister is wise. I think a lot of our potential voters would prefer us to concentrate on housing and health. But there are other elements in the party that have pushed this and the leadership has caved on it.
‘Our party is growing and any party that has to accommodate larger numbers of people will tell you that the party becomes more difficult to manage. It’s an obvious problem,’ they added.
Cabinet sources confirmed that they believe that Sinn Féin has made a major error.
‘The pre-2011 core of Sinn Féin, those who were their firm members and supporters before the crash, is anti-EU,’ said a Cabinet minister.
‘A lot of them are anti-migration and I think they’re cannibalising from within. You can see that in parts of Mary Lou’s own constituency and some of the attacks she’s faced
‘A lot of the core Sinn Féin vote are uncomfortable with how they’ve moved to the centre. And they’re split between a new cohort who want housing to be at the centre of their political platform and a different generation doesn’t like migration, doesn’t like the EU.
‘They’re kind of completely exposed and stretched on those questions and I can see them – and
this is not wishful thinking – I could see him coming back [reducing in popularity] on that.
‘They’re getting shouted out by some of the protesters and some of the wider groupings. There is anger towards them as much as there is towards the Government.’
Many Sinn Féin TDs admit that because of the party’s recent connection with crime and history with terrorism they have a credibility gap on this issue and would be better off concentrating on housing and health. Sinn Féin TDs concede they are facing intense internal debate over the path of the party.
Meanwhile, three junior ministers
of Fine Gael launched a series of highly politicised attacks on their political opponents this weekend. Fine Gael minister of state Martin Heydon told the MoS: ‘Sinn Féin failed utterly in their duty as public representatives to support the gardaí and citizens at a time of crisis. The Government’s focus is
still on the victims and the need to further resource the gardaí to meet new challenges. This is first and foremost in our minds.
‘The only thing Sinn Féin brings to the table is a political playbook. They know nothing else.
‘It has raised concern among the public – how will they react in government to a crisis if they react so badly in opposition?’
Meanwhile, minister Peter Burke, a close ally of Leo Varadkar, accused Sinn Féin of cynicism.
‘They are using a continuous
cynical political ploy that Sinn Féin use any time the country requires leadership. Their first response is trying to undermine the State and its institutions, of which they have decades of form.
‘Our country needs to be united in response to this horrific attack on the innocence of children and their carer. The last thing we need is Sinn Féin trying to bank political capital. We need leadership and solutions. But, unfortunately, this is alien to Sinn Féin. Time and time again they try and take out a minister. It’s not the first time they tried to leave our country without a government over Christmas and, like previous attempts, this one will fail.’
Junior minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill referred to the convicted criminal and former Sinn Féin councillor Jonathan Dowdall.
‘Sinn Féin, before commenting on riots in Dublin, have to answer key questions on how they did or didn’t react to issues such as Jonathan Dowdall. They complain about Garda resources, but how many were diverted to investigating Jonathan Dowdall and pursuing him and his drug dealer pals through the Special Criminal Court – which they struggle to recognise?’