Shane Ross: Fine Gael tried to isolate Alliance TDs
Transport Minister Shane Ross accused Coalition partners Fine Gael of treating him and his Independent Alliance colleagues as “an inconvenience” and trying to isolate them at Cabinet,
Describing himself as an “outsider” and a “dissident minister”, Mr Ross said Fine Gael hardliners, including Taoiseach Enda Kenny, have sought to “bypass” himself and minister of state for disabilities Finian McGrath at the Cabinet table.
“Yes. I think they regarded us as inconvenience, an add-on, and we didn’t feel that was the case, and we needed to flex our muscles early on,” Mr Ross told the Irish Examiner.
“This wasn’t the role we were going to play... It is not a Fine Gael government.”
After months of ferocious rows, Mr Ross and his Alliance colleagues met with Mr Kenny and other Fine Gael ministers before Christmas to clear the air.
Mr Ross said relations between the Alliance and Fine Gael were “very stressed” after Mick Wallace’s abortion bill, which almost caused the collapse of the Government.
“We were very surprised when this blew up when it looked like Fine Gael were requiring us to vote on an issue of conscience,” said Mr Ross. “So we felt we had to take a stand. We weren’t in the business of bringing the Government down, but it was a defining moment and we had to put down a marker. There was a stand-off for a while and, of course, the result was we got the free vote. But relations were very stressed for a while.”
According to Mr Ross, the showdown meant an understanding was arrived at in the hope of saving the fragile minority Government.
Mr Ross said: “There is a better relationship now but, in the initial stages, they regarded us as a couple of guys at the Cabinet table to be bypassed, really.”
It has, however, emerged that the two sides are on a fresh collision course over promises to improve services at Waterford Hospital, which has been a major priority for Independent Alliance junior minister John Halligan.
Mr Halligan has met strong resistance from Health Minister Simon Harris to develop a second cardiac laboratory at the hospital and has threatened to quit Government if promises made are not delivered.
The stand-off has escalated in recent weeks after a Department of Health briefing note said the case for a second cardiac laboratory at University Hospital Waterford was “not a top investment priority” which has angered Mr Halligan.
However, Mr Ross has said the Alliance is standing full square behind Mr Halligan.
“We made it absolutely clear that we were 100% behind John Halligan and we weren’t going to divert from that,” Mr Ross said.
“I think John is so committed to this, it would be unreasonable for him to continue to behave in a compliant way if he doesn’t get comfort on it. I know he has made some colourful interventions which have been regarded as very disloyal from time to time.
“But, in very difficult circumstances, he has voted with the Government.
“We are going to support John all the way. We don’t want to get into a big confrontation but, you know, we will support him all the way.”
According to Mr Ross, one option may be a mobile cath lab: “That was discussed at some length and it is agreed it is taken as one of the options, fairly urgently.”
