FF / FG an indecent proposal
FIANNA Fáil and Fine Gael members of Kerry County Council have expressed guarded support for an historic coalition between the parties, but they are less than enthusiastic about a possible role for the Green Party in Government.
The Kerryman contacted all 17 councillors from both parties to gauge their opinion on the mooted coalition, which – in spite of some fractious exchanges in recent days – appears increasingly likely to be agreed in the coming weeks.
As recently as a decade ago a power-sharing deal between Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil would have seemed almost unthinkable, but the post-election arithmetic after the Sinn Féin surge appears to have made the deal somewhat more palatable to the great political rivals.
Many rank-and-file members of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil were implacably opposed to it – and indeed many still are – but the arrival of the Coronavirus and the resultant national emergency has served to focus minds on the greater good and the urgent need for a stable Government with an electoral mandate.
Among the Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael ranks on Kerry County Council, that need for stable Government is universally recognised.
Though many have reservations about a coalition, most of the parties’ councillors broadly support a deal, with the vast majority citing the Coronavirus crisis as the primary reason they are willing to back an FF/ FG alliance.
The unprecedented nature of the crisis and the need for certainty in the years ahead was brought up by several councillors, who all backed the needs of their county and country over any historic political rivalry between their parties.
They may have reservations about backing a coalition but Kerry’s Fine Gael and Fianna Fail councillors are practically of one voice when it comes to the issue of their other potential coalition partners.
The Green Party’s role in Government is a matter of considerable concern, with most of the Kerry Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael councillors strongly opposed – or at best ambivalent – about the Greens’ presence at the Cabinet table.
While many are worried that the Greens don’t have the experience and wherewithal needed to govern in times of such crisis, the main fear is the possible impact on rural Ireland.
Long seen as an urban party that doesn’t understand life outside the cities, the majority of councillors expressed serious concerns about the impact of Green party policies on Kerry.
Fears were also voiced that, in a bid to reach a deal with the Greens, both Micheál Martin and Leo Varadkar’s negotiating teams might be inclined to give too much away.
This, many of the councillors said, needs to be avoided at all costs.
A sharp difference can also be seen in how each party is communicating with their councillors and rank-and-file members across the country.
While almost all of Fianna Fáil’s ten councillors said they felt their views had been heard on the coalition proposal, Fine Gael’s Kerry representatives were far less positive when it came to their party leadership’s consultations with them.
Of Fine Gael’s seven councillors, five said they weren’t happy with the level of consultation they had received on the coalition talks and the say they have had on the deal.