Kenny ‘not caught by surprise’ by election announcement

Fine Gael leader Kenny has insisted that he was not taken by surprise by the Taoiseach election announcement today, saying he had been on standby.

“This election is about the Government’s failure to provide public services across the whole range of sectors,” he said. “The people are now going to have their say and I know what they are going to do.”

Earlier, in a move that caught most of the countries politicians unaware, Mr Ahern travelled to the President's official residence Aras an Uachtarain in Dublin's Phoenix Park to allow the election to take place on May 24.

His junior coalition partner, the Progressive Democrats, started to erect election posters overnight in advance of the Taoiseach’s move.

The election is expected to be keenly fought, with most opinion polls suggesting it could be a tight race.

In recent days the alternative coalition of Fine Gael and Labour have been buoyed by opinion polls suggesting that they could form the next Government.

However the Opposition parties have considerable ground to make up from the last election in 2002 where Fianna Fáil fell just short of securing an overall majority.

There will be considerable interest in how the Green Party and Sinn Féin also perform, with either party poised to become kingmakers after the May 24 election if they make significant gains.