Martin: FF no longer a toxic brand

Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin has insisted his party is no longer a toxic brand and is “moving on” from its troubled recent history and “into a further phase of recovery and renewal”.

He rejected recent claims by former deputy leader and Galway West TD Éamon Ó Cuív that the party is lacking an “overarching mission” after pre-Christmas polls showed its popularity stagnating at around 21% to 22% — down from a peak of 29% in March.

As he faces into his biggest challenge as leader with the local and European elections next summer, Mr Martin defended his stewardship of the party to date, saying “given where we were coming from in the 2011 election, I think we’ve made good progress”.

“I think we’ve a very clear mission, and I’ve made that mission very, very clear from the outset. And that is to make sure that Fianna Fáil is a vital force in Irish democracy into the future, and in the Irish party political system,” he said.

In an interview with the Irish Examiner, the Cork South Central TD played down the possibility of some of the party “old guard”, including former tánaiste Mary Coughlan and former ceann comhairle John O’Donoghue, seeking a return to politics by contesting the 2016 general election.

Stories of their return are “overplayed to an incredible degree”, he said, adding: “I don’t see too many former TDs coming back at all. We’ve had no indication that there’s any great numbers at all coming back.”

While anyone is entitled to put their name forward at conventions, he said: “Obviously any party in our position needs new blood.”

Mr Martin did not rule out the possibility of new recruits joining Fianna Fáil from within the Dáil, following on from the signing of the former Labour TD Colm Keaveney earlier this month.

A number of TDs have been linked to the party including former Fine Gael TD Peter Mathews and Independent Stephen Donnelly, who has said joining Fianna Fáil was one of a number of possibilities he was considering.

Asked if Fianna Fáil is still a toxic brand, Mr Martin said “We are not. We are moving on. There is a lot of vibrancy in the party. I am having very good engagement on the doorsteps.

“That is not to say that people are not critical, or that people won’t raise issues — not just with me but with politics in general, there is a broader disillusionment with politics in general. It’s the job of all politicians to rebuild trust in politics and it’s my job, as leader of Fianna Fáil, to rebuild the trust of the people of Fianna Fáil.”

He also criticised the “jackboot” tactics of the government parties in trying to “shut down” Dáil debate and said many govern-ment backbenchers “don’t want normal parliamentary democracy to prevail”.

He said: “The Government needs to be careful with its huge majority, that it becomes almost immune to public opinion or to anger out there.”