FF fails to woo Labour Party for future coalition

FIANNA FÁIL’S efforts to woo the Labour Party as future coalition Government partners were rejected yesterday as an act of desperation to stay in power.

Foreign Affairs Minister Dermot Ahern said yesterday that he disagreed fundamentally with Pat Rabbitte’s decision to rule out entering Government with Fianna Fáil after the next general election.

The approach comes ahead of the forthcoming by-election where Labour has a formal transfer pact with Fine Gael, the first pact entered into by Mr Rabbitte with Enda Kenny’s party, and after an opinion poll showed Fianna Fáil’s support back up to 2002 general election levels.