Unrest in Sinn Féin grows over ‘bonkers’ decisions
Growing unease over party bosses’ U-turns
UNREST is growing among Sinn Féin TDs over recent U-turns ordered by its leadership which many in the party believe were ultimately taken in Belfast, the Irish Mail on Sunday has learned.
In a rare criticism of party bosses, one senior party figure criticised the ‘bonkers’ decision to table a motion of no confidence in Justice Minister Helen McEntee, which was comfortably defeated in the Dáil this week.
This followed criticism last month of Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald’s dramatic U-turn on calls to expel the Israeli ambassador, which was made in Belfast just a day after she publicly declared she would not support a Dáil motion on the matter. Disquiet within the party is also mounting over speculation that at least four sitting Sinn Féin TDs will not be contesting the next general election.
Some Sinn Féin TDs said they were shocked at the decision to table the motion of no confidence in the Justice Minister, which was defeated by 83 votes to 63.
One party source said the decision was made out of ‘panic’.
Speaking under condition of anonymity, another senior
Sinn Féin figure of national prominence told the MoS:
‘It appeared to the public that we were fulfilling our stereotype by going against gardaí.
‘Yet what was really damaging was that it incorrectly appeared
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that we were somehow putting ourselves close to the far Right protesters who caused all this. We are opposed to those people… we are of the Left. And many of us spent our whole lives fighting discrimination and racism. It was a totally incoherent move. It was bonkers.’ Sources said many within the party cautioned that any public stance taken on justice issues would be ‘unwise’ considering Sinn Féin’s long-standing associations with criminality and terrorism. In contrast, Coalition leaders were jubilant at Sinn Féin strategic error to tackle the Government on justice instead of housing and health.
Minister of State Niall Collins told the MoS: ‘We are facing serious challenges across a range of sensitive tough issues, from crime to immigration, which require solid leadership. The response of Sinn Féin to this was to play the woman [McEntee], not the issue.
‘This is not how you govern if you really want to solve a crisis, but it is Sinn Féin’s sole option in all events.’
One Sinn Féin TD said of the decision to tackle the Government on justice: ‘Throughout the rise of this lawlessness on the streets, which really increased since the summer, we were in unison in the parliamentary party that we should stick to housing and health.
‘Anyone with any kind of political sense could see that staying away from law and order, in a year that Mary Lou’s former councillor [Jonathan Dowdall] was in court acting as a grass against Gerry Hutch, was a consistently smart position.’
Other Sinn Féin sources pointed out that their organisation is very different from centrist parties in the Republic.
One source said: ‘We are not, in fact, as centralised as others would have us. Non-politicians have a proper role. Our Ard Comhairle, which has 50 members, from the North and South has a lot of influence. But our main decision makers, ultimately, are Mary Lou, Michelle O’Neill, Pearse Doherty and Declan Kearney, who are a mix of north and south of course.’
Another source said the party has a three-tier system in the Oireachtas. The lower tier consists of parliamentary party members; the middle tier of frontbench spokespeople; with the top decisions made by Mary Lou McDonald, finance spokesman Pearse Doherty and a non-elected official, Dawn Doyle.
The recent high-profile U-turns have coincided with support for Sinn Féin falling to less than 30 per cent for the first time in two years.
On current levels of support, it would struggle to form a minority coalition with smaller Left-wing parties and Independents.
Sinn Féin’s election hopes are also coming under threat amid growing speculation within the party that several sitting TDs will be dropped from the party ticket.
Last week high-profile Louth TD and Public Accounts Committee (PAC) member Imelda Munster announced she would not be contesting the next election.
According to party sources, Ms Munster – who was elected in 2016 as former leader Gerry Adams’ running mate and was expected to feature in Cabinet if Sinn Féin is elected to government – made an agreement with the Sinn Féin leadership she would only sit for two Dáil terms.
Ms Munster did not respond to queries this weekend. It has also been speculated two other female TDs, Patricia Ryan (Kildare South) and Reada Cronin (Kildare North) may not stand again.
There is also uncertainty about the parliamentary party future of Martin Browne, whose Tipperary constituency has been split, and Pat Buckley in East Cork.
Neither of the four TDs responded to requests for comment.
However, the Sinn Féin press office denied the TDs have been ‘deselected’ by the party.
Earlier this month, Sinn Féin suffered a setback in Cork East, where sitting councillor Danielle Twomey announced on X, formerly Twitter, that: ‘As of today [December 4], I have resigned from the Sinn Féin party. I will continue my next few weeks as an Independent with Cork County Council.’
In a statement that will cause further unease within Sinn Féin, she added cryptically: ‘This year has taught me to not allow yourself to be subject to environments that don’t respect you or value you.’
Ms Twomey, who has a first class honours business graduate and is a mother-of-three, was regarded as an ideal election candidate who was strongly poised to capture a Dáil seat. Local Independent councillor Liam Quirke said of her decision: ‘I think there is a very good chance Danielle would have topped the poll in the next election, such is her diligence, the range of her work and the massive respect she has built up in East Cork since she entered politics.’
‘It was a totally incoherent move’
‘This is not how you govern to solve a crisis’