Voters poised to inflict ultimate pain

AT least Brian Cowen has turned on its head the old maxim that all political careers end in failure – his premiership began in failure and unravelled from there.

Losing Lisbon last June dealt a crushing early blow to his authority, and next month’s European, local and by-election showdowns threaten to finish the job.

The country is in an angry, agitated mood, bewildered by the sheer scale and suddenness of the economic crash, and frightful the Government has still failed to put a floor under the collapse or offer any credible exit strategy from its consequences.