Election in May possible, say senior Fianna Fáil members

Senior Fianna Fáil members believe a May election could be looming as talks to form a government continue.

The team of four negotiators appointed by the party met Independent Alliance and other Independent TDs yesterday to discuss the possibility of gaining support as a minority government.

Fine Gael have also been in talks with Independents and the smaller parties in a bid to gain as much support from others as possible.

However, a number of senior Fianna Fáil TDs now believe a government will not be formed and the political parties will be going back to the people within two months.

“It’s quite possible there will be a May election, there seems to be no easy way out of it.

“I question the accuracy of polls that say if there was an election now, or anytime soon, we would come up with the same conclusion because elections have their own dynamics,” a senior Fianna Fáil source said.

“It’s quite possible that if things can’t be put together, that there will be an election and all the indications are that it can’t be put together,” the source said.

The view was echoed by a number of Fianna Fáil members yesterday.

However, another senior politician said the party would be trying to avoid an election in the short-term.

“We have to avoid that; people have voted. The outcome may be difficult but we have to make it work and we have to find a way.”

Fianna Fáil TDs Barry Cowen, Michael McGrath, Jim O’Callaghan and Charlie McConalogue continued talks on behalf of the party yesterday meeting with the Independent Alliance and a group of five TDs campaigning on rural issues.

Michael McGrath

Newly-elected Cork South West TD Michael Collins, who was one of the Independents who met Fianna Fáil, said the meeting was based around broad policy issues. He said there are a lot of areas that need to be ironed out.

“We have now had discussions with both Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil. We have to go back to our constituencies and speak to the people who were behind our campaigns,” he said after the talks ended.

Mr Collins added: “There is going to be a lot of bitter pills being swallowed if we are going to a deal but it will be for the greater good of the people of rural Ireland.

“There are no local deals going on, it might be related to broadband but that impacts people from Kerry to Donegal; likewise Irish Water will have to be discussed to see what will happen there.”