Labour comes out fighting in post-election relaunch

ATTACK politics dominated the opening of Labour’s conference last night as deputy leader Joan Burton branded the Taoiseach greedy, arrogant and out of touch.

Ms Burton used the party’s post-election relaunch gathering to claim Bertie Ahern had abandoned his promises to voters and was content to feather his own nest while his ministers jostled to succeed him.

She derided the Taoiseach’s evidence to the Mahon corruption probe in September as “unbelievable”, re-enforcing a more combative style of opposition since Eamon Gilmore was elected leader.

Ms Burton stressed to activists that the party needed to refresh and restructure itself if it was to put the poor showing at the May polls behind it, as she welcomed delegates to the Wexford conference. It is understood the new leadership of Mr Gilmore and Ms Burton are keen to use the gathering to re-introduce a more inclusive style of decision making after what some Labour traditionalists felt was the rigid top-down approach of Pat Rabbitte.

Standing in for Mr Gilmore, who attended his mother’s funeral, Ms Burton ridiculed Mr Ahern’s claims he was “poverty-stricken” compared to other world leaders despite his €38,000 a year pay rise. She said the Taoiseach was concerned about not having a private jet and personal chef, when he should be devoting his time to the cancer misdiagnosis scandal, affordable housing and school places.

Ms Burton added that if Mr Ahern’s testimony to the Mahon Tribunal next month was as “unbelievable” as the evidence he gave in September it would prove fatal for him. “It is difficult to believe that a repeat of the confused, contradictory and unbelievable testimony we heard last September would not lead to an early exit from office,” she said.

Ms Burton warned the Mahon “elephant in the room” might force an earlier than expected election if what she branded the “see no evil” Greens were forced to re-evaluate their deal with FF if explosive new material emerged.