Sinn Féin agree to People Before Profit proposal to resume government talks

Sinn Féin have agreed to People Before Profit's letter proposing to resume talks to form a left-led minority government, and say they have been in contact with the Green Party about doing so.

Mary Lou McDonald's party replied to Richard Boyd Barrett on Sunday night after the Solidarity-People Before Profit leader wrote to the party last week.

Mr Boyd Barrett noted in his letter that “radical and necessary changes in policy will simply not take place under a government involving Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil”.

The two parties had, prior to the outbreak of Covid-19 in Ireland, reached “an advanced stage” to develop a programme for government, with Solidarity-People Before Profit calling for such talks to resume.

Mary Lou McDonald's reply on Sunday opened the door to such talks resuming, warning that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael's framework document, and letter to the Green Party last week is a "threat of austerity".

"Sinn Féin remain very committed to a government for change," the letter reads.

"We want to be in government. We want to lead a government for change. We want to agree a programme for change.

"We remain in contact with other party leaders and independents and spoke in the last week to Eamon Ryan, Catherine Murphy and a range of independents and would welcome continued conversation with your party about your participation in such a government."

Richard Boyd Barrett

Priorities listed by the Sinn Fein leader were; capital investment in public housing, ensuring people have enough to live on during and beyond this crisis and a serious commitment to the type of change required to tackle the climate emergency.

Mr Boyd Barrett says he found the letter to be a positive development, and will write back in order to get the talks up and running once again.

"I'm going to write back and suggest that we recommence work on the document," he said.

"A programme for government is not enough to form a government, we will need others involved and I know Sinn Féin had separately had been speaking to Social Democrats.

"As far as I'm concerned, it would involve an appeal to the Greens in an effort to form a minority government.

On timelines for such a document, Mr Boyd Barrett said: "It depends how enthusiastic the other parties are, I don't see how it would need to take an extended period of time, but it depends on other parties and their enthusiasm for it."