Progressive Democrats don’t pull any punches

THE upbeat mood among the Progressive Democrats at the weekend was even better than the euphoria of a winning All-Ireland team — but the PDs had gone one step further and clinched the double.

Sceptics wrote them off before the last general election when party leader Mary Harney claimed they would not only hold their four Dáil seats but would double their numbers to eight.

The sceptics and many seasoned media pundits had to eat humble pie when the PDs did in fact achieve their target and this weekend was the first time they gathered to celebrate that success.

Party leader Mary Harney was also in buoyant mood, even making several quips about a Fianna Fáil backbencher's claim that the PDs were punching way above their weight in Cabinet.

Finance Minister Charlie McCreevy happened to be in the same hotel as the Progressive Democrats on Saturday night addressing the Inspector of Taxes conference.

Wait till Fianna Fáil Deputy John McGuinness hears about that, Ms Harney quipped. "He will definitely believe we are punching above our weight now."

The Tánaiste went on to make no apologies for the two Progressive Democrats ministers punching above their weight at the Cabinet table, claiming they needed to when faced with 13 Fianna Fáil ministers.

The Progressive Democrats have in fact landed several successful punches in getting taxes lowered, taxis

deregulated and the treatment purchase fund introduced.

And they are determined to land a few more punches in tackling the rip-off culture that fleeces consumers by opening up new areas to competition.

Aer Lingus has benefited from competition in the airline market and increased its profits, and Mary Harney is determined to back Transport Minister Séamus Brennan's bid to break up Aer Rianta and CIE and bring more competition to the bus and airport markets.

She also plans to join forces with Minister Brennan and her PD Cabinet colleague, Justice Minister Michael McDowell, to radically reform the insurance industry.

Mary Harney also left the party members and anyone with leadership aspirations in no doubt that she intends to lead the party into the next general election.

She believes she is young enough at 50 and has the energy for the job.

The PD leader and senior party officials got their way in having the motion calling for the members to vote for the leader deferred until the autumn where it will be considered by a special Rules Conference.

The likely outcome is that the members will not be given a vote because there is too much of a danger of the leadership position being hijacked by anyone who could flood the party with their own supporters.

It is most likely the PDs will go for a compromise formula of extending the leadership electorate to a collegiate made up of the parliamentary party, national executive council members and their county councillors.

So while the two main contenders, Tom Parlon and Michael McDowell, insisted that they had no interest in the top job because there was no vacancy, they did protest a bit too much.

But both Minister McDowell and the Tánaiste were equally more critical of Sinn Féin than the Taoiseach and called on them to come out straight and say the war is over.

This is the only way to break the current deadlock in the North's peace process and Mary Harney went a step further by saying she believed Sinn Féin and the Provisional IRA were the one organisation.

Another contender for the PD leadership, Junior Finance Minister Tom Parlon warned of a threat of a left wing alliance of Greens, Labour, Fine Gael who would wreck the economy in six months if they got power.

He claimed they were anti-investment, anti-enterprise and anti-everything.

No doubt the leaders of these three parties will have a few bones to pick with Minister Parlon this week in the Dáil.

The PDs left Galway with one aim to double their number of councilors in next year's local elections.

Their newly-elected chairman, Peter Wyer, certainly seems to have the electoral strategic skills to help them pull that off.

As director of elections in Galway West last time round, he ran three candidates to secure the Dáil seat left vacant by Bobby Molloy' retirement.

It remains to be seen if he can replicate that success nationwide next June.

Former Junior Foreign Affairs Minister Liz O'Donnell seems to have her sights set on Europe, and there was no denial to the rumour that she will run for the PDs in Dublin in the European Parliament elections in June 2004.

Deputy O'Donnell even told the delegates in her warm-up speech that the PDs will make an impact on Europe and will have to run candidates next time round.

A nod is as good as a wink...