Can the left unite as Independents grow in influence?
ONCE the smoke has cleared on the local election results, it will be time for the new wave of Independents and small parties to draw up an agenda for exercising power.
As most of them are on the left of the political spectrum, the first item on the agenda is likely to be the split.
What is it about the left that it cannot get its act together? This issue has been particularly acute in a country where the left has struggled for a foothold in a political culture long dominated by Civil War parties. Time and again, any prospect of mobilising a force to challenge and realign politics has come a cropper. And now, on foot of a huge mandate — particularly in the cities — the issue will again come to the fore.
During the election campaign, a loose left-wing alliance of 100 local election candidates signed up to an agreement on vote transfers and opposition to austerity measures. The alliance included People Before Profit, the Workers’ Party, United Left, and the Anti-Austerity Alliance. Their pledge to recommend transferring to each other appears to have borne fruit. The first-preference vote for independents and smaller parties was 28%, larger than the vote for any of the four main parties, including Sinn Féin.
The pledge included a promise to oppose water and property charges, to fight cuts and austerity measures, and not to enter into coalition with any parties who have accepted these measures. Notably, that which bound the various entities together concentrated on negative politics rather than anything positive.
Now they will have a change to coalesce, at least in the loosest possible sense. Will it happen? History suggests it will be extremely problematic, but this time the stakes are higher. What if a loose amalgam of left-wing parties aren’t able to get their act together within the confines of local government? What point then would there be in voting along the same lines in a general election? The most recent attempt to bring together the disparate elements of the left speaks volumes.
In the run-up to the last general election, a new amalgam of left-wing parties came together under the umbrella of the United Left Alliance (ULA). Then, as now, the prevailing political environment was ripe for exploitation. Austerity and the failed politics of the market presented left-wing parties with the perfect opportunity to win legions of voters over to their polities.
The alliance included the Workers Party, People Before Profit, the Socialist party, the Workers and Unemployed Action Group, and former members of the Labour Party.
Twenty candidates stood under the ULA flag, and five were elected, including two for the Socialist party, two People Before Profit, and Seamus Healy, the main man in the Workers and Unemployed Action Group.
All went swimmingly for the first year or so. Here were left-wing TDs showing they could behave like grown-ups, in pursuit of the broad thrust of their policies.
The split, when it came, had little to do with the minutiae of Marxist ideology or opposition to neoliberalism. Instead, it centred around a man who wasn’t even in the alliance — TD Mick Wallace. In June 2012, he of the flowing locks and loud shirts was found to have engaged in Vat fraud some years previously when his building business was in serious difficulties. Wallace was not in the ULA, but was a member of the technical group, formed to share speaking time in the House.
Healy, wearing his socialist hat, called on Wallace to resign. After a little prompting, Socialist Party leader Joe Higgins did likewise. His party colleague, Clare Daly, was in a bit of a bind. She was friendly with Wallace and demurred from taking the party line that he should resign.
Instead, she resigned from the Socialist Party. One source who observes these matters closely claims Higgins was never the same after that. Daly was a major asset, and Higgins’s kindred spirit, one whom he would have regarded as the perfect successor when the time came. Now, she was abandoning the party because of a friendship with a man whose transgression was anathema to left-wing ideology.
Healy didn’t stick around for long after that. He pulled out a few months later, in October 2012. He claimed he had been blocked within the ULA in calling for Wallace’s resignation.
“As an organisation committed to tax equity and defence of public services, we now believe that we can more effectively campaign for these objectives outside the United Left Alliance,” he said. After that, the alliance was consigned to the dustbin of history.
Six months later, People Before Profit TD Joan Collins — who had once been a member of the Socialist Party — announced she was leaving and joining Daly to form a group under the banner of United Left. This new body may be an alliance, but it is definitely not the United Left Alliance.
Just in case there might be any chance of unity on the left, Mick Wallace formed his own group, called Independents for Equity. Collectively, all the constituent elements of the effectively defunct ULA could now be called United Left Divided.
That was the fate of an attempt to bring together the disparate elements of the left at a time when a new dawn looked to be on the horizon for Irish politics.
Another dawn opened up at the weekend. The rise of those pursuing broad left-wing policies has taken another leap. Once again, a loose alliance has come together to pursue these goals. Will they be able to get their act together to pursue an agreed agenda? Highly unlikely. The obvious solution would be for the groups to come together and form a new party. This would mean that all involved would have to engage in that bugbear of the left — compromise. Egos would require suppression. Suspicions would have to be laid aside, the past put to bed. If it was possible, the rewards could be great, with the real possibility of assuming power in the near future, most likely in coalition with Sinn Féin.
History suggests that won’t happen. Instead, there will be efforts to pursue common goals, but the outcome of these efforts is likely to be patchy. One week, the left in Cork City Council might be getting along like a house on fire, while their kindred spirits in Dublin are at each other’s throats. The next week, roles might be reversed.
Perhaps the size of Friday’s victory will spur all the constituent elements to move with a greater purpose. Then again, if they deign to look at the one successful merger on the left in recent decades, all bets may be off.
In 1999, the former Democrat Left, which evolved from the Workers Party — which in turn had links with the Soviet Communists — merged with the Labour Party. The merger has largely been seamless and without rancour. A new, stronger party of the left emerged. At least until last weekend.
One of Kerry’s most colourful political figures — pipped for a seat by a mere two votes in the Listowel Electoral Area — said he may seek a judicial review of the returning officer’s decision not to allow him examine the 173 spoiled votes at a recount.
Independent candidate Dan Kiely, 71, who was one of five candidates fighting for the final four seats in Listowel, sought the recount. He said his solicitor had advised him it was within his rights to examine the spoiled votes.
“I’m obviously disappointed with the result. In my long career in politics I’ve been involved in many a fight, but never saw anyone lose a seat by so few votes. I’m in consultation with my solicitor and will consider looking for a judicial review,” said the former senator and FF county councillor.
“I believe an examination of the spoiled votes could have made the difference in the election. I was just two votes behind one candidate and five behind another in the last count.”
A Kerry County Council spokesman said the returning officer, Michael McMahon, went through the process as set out by the local elections regulations and advised Mr Kiely of his options if he was not satisfied.
No significant errors were found in the recount to alter the result and Mr McMahon declared the following candidates elected: Dianne Nolan, Sinn Féin, on 1,841; Liam Purtill, Fine Gael, on 1,574; Jimmy Moloney, Fianna Fáil, on 1,529, and Mike Kennelly, Fine Gael, on 1,526.
Mr Kiely, who was on 1,524, said he will take it easy for a few months and is not ruling anything in or out regarding the future.
“I have my gun dogs and I love fishing. I also have lots of health and tonnes of energy,” he told reporters after his defeat.
Three candidates had earlier declared elected for the Listowel area: John Brassil, Fianna Fáil; Robert Beasley, Sinn Féin; and Aoife Thornton, Fine Gael.
— Donal Hickey
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