Voters weren’t in the mood to hear Martin

THE scones alone could have pulled votes in the warm and inviting farmhouse kitchen offered as a launch pad for Fianna Fáil’s agrifood policy — if only there were voters to sample them.

Instead, on a day savoured by none but the ducks on O’Sullivans’ farm a few miles south of Cork city, party leader Micheál Martin outlined his agrarian hopes to a field full of cows who nodded and mooed in wonder, the bovine equivalent of an audience of Fianna Fáil party faithful.

Camera work done, it was back to the pack of waiting journos for questions on what his party had ever done for farmers? Where was Fianna Fáil when they were struggling with banks to get credit? Why not offer them the sun, moon and stars while in power? Come to think of it, where were the farmers to witness the launch of this agrifood policy? (After all Fianna Fáil now believes agriculture is “central to restoring economic growth and creating jobs” and has “absolute commitment” to the sector).

To be fair, there were two farmers present— Tomás O’Sullivan, who kindly opened up his home at Summerlea House to Mr Martin, and his father Seán, son of Ted O’Sullivan, former Cork West Fianna Fáil TD.

Otherwise, Fianna Fáil’s agrarian aspirations were lost on a herd of Friesians who initially played follow-the-leader with Mr Martin, but then quickly lost interest, like a fickle electorate, disenchanted by what was on offer.

A moment of hope out in the shed came and went before Mr Martin’s arrival. He just missed out on a cow giving birth, a wasted photo opportunity.

“He just missed the drop,” Seán O’Sullivan said, words that seemed strangely prescient.

Was Mr Martin worried that the poll-bounce was over, one member of the media asked? No, Fianna Fáil was making steady progress, he said, and the party was energised.

“There’s a lot of volatility out there in the polls and there’s a long way to go yet as we know from previous campaigns, so we’re very focused and targeted in terms of what we are doing...as far as I’m concerned we’re about maximising our vote and maximising our seats; polls in themselves don’t dictate the outcome of any election, the people will on election day and they shouldn’t be taken for granted.”

And then it was time to shake off the borrowed wellies and head for the comfort of the kitchen and a well-buttered scone in a welcoming home tucked away from a cynical electorate.