Presidential hopefuls oppose head-to-head debate

The presidential campaign resumes again today after suggestions that the two leading candidates in the presidential race will square up in a one-to-one debate have been dismissed.

The idea was firmly ruled out by several contenders amid claims that it would isolate the rest of the field from frontrunners, Independent Sean Gallagher and Labour’s Michael D Higgins.

The prospect of a head-to-head battle between the pair emerged after a shock opinion poll revealed Mr Higgins had slipped into second place.

Mr Gallagher dismissed the possibility of an invite out of hand as unfair and said it will never happen.

“Why would we exclude five other candidates?” he said.

“We’ve been through 12 or 13 presidential debates so far and a few more to go. I feel that would be unfair on the other five candidates.”

Joe Costello, director of elections for Mr Higgins, said the Labour man was open to the idea of a one-to-one but stressed it is a purely hypothetical prospect.

“Michael D never issued a challenge to a one-to-one debate with anybody but there was a hypothetical suggestion made,” he said.

“But he would be willing to take up that challenge if it arose.”

Mr Costello added that the Labour candidate has 12 media interviews planned for the rest of the campaign and at least six will involve collective debates with all his opponents.

The idea was rejected yesterday at the Inclusion Ireland conference, the national association for people with an intellectual disability, in the Mansion House Dublin and attended by all candidates except Dana Rosemary Scallon.

“I’m just leaving a conference now on Inclusion Ireland and I think that will not be very inclusive,” Mr Gallagher said.

Mr Higgins discussed the possibility of a one-on-one in a weekend interview and claimed that a straightforward debate would be useful.

He went on to say it would be presumptuous to think one-to-one debates were on the cards.

He predicted any debate between the pair would run left to right politically, saying he had no doubt Mr Gallagher, a former Fianna Fáil national executive member, was coming from the right wing point of view.

Sinn Féin’s Martin McGuinness, who is trailing the pair in third place in the opinion polls, also ridiculed Mr Higgins’ call, saying presidential debates should focus on real issues and not just candidates from the establishment.

“Both of those are from the establishment. I’m the only real non-establishment candidate. Michael D Higgins represents a party that’s imposing austerity on the people of Ireland and Sean Gallagher represents a party that was involved in bank bailouts,” Mr McGuinness said.

“As someone who is the only real non-establishment candidate in the election I think it’s time to have a debate about the real issues.”

He described Mr Higgins, Mr Gallagher and Fine Gael’s Gay Mitchell as more of the same in political terms.

“In this election people have real choices to make. My candidacy is about sending a very clear message that the Irish people want a break from the bad politics that led to the economic and financial mess that we now find ourselves in.”

Mr McGuinness added: “This election is a choice between those who represent more of the same or someone who advocates a better, fairer way. Michael D Higgins, Gay Mitchell and Sean Gallagher represent more of the same.”

The next presidential debate will take place tomorrow night on TG4. Others are lined up for RTÉ Radio and Newstalk, with the latter billed as interactive and streamed live on the internet by Google.

Meanwhile, Senator David Norris set himself apart from all the other candidates, saying he is the only one to have never been a member of a political party.

He described himself as the only true “24 carat” independent candidate.

“While other candidates may wear the badge of independence for political gain, I am the only one who has never been a member of a political party, never been appointed to a state board or never had my political campaigns backed by those with vested interests,” he said.

He referred to Mr Gallagher who, up until recently, was on the Fianna Fáil national executive.

He also took a swipe at Mary Davis, pointing out that he had never served on any State boards.

Senator Norris then attacked last week’s Keane report on the mortgage debt crisis, describing it as a betrayal of the people of Ireland.

“We are beginning to see evictions again in Ireland,” he said.

“This is what the Land League fought against, this is what the United Irishmen fought against, this is what the people of 1916 fought against, and yet we have our own Government assisting in the process of eviction at the direction of outside financial interests.”