Left-wing coalition with Sinn Féin 'could be managed', says McDonald 

Ms McDonald said she would not rule any potential coalition partners out following the next general election, including current Government parties

The Sinn Féin leader was speaking in the wake of yet another strong opinion poll for her party. While she said her dream is a Sinn Féin majority, she conceded it may not be possible. Picture: Brian Lawless/PA

Mary Lou McDonald said that a coalition between Sinn Féin and a number of smaller left-wing parties need not be unstable and could “be managed”.

The Sinn Féin leader was speaking in the wake of yet another strong opinion poll for her party. While she said her dream is a Sinn Féin majority, she conceded it may not be possible. 

She  said she would not rule any potential coalition partners out following the next general election, including current Government parties.

The Sinn Féin leader was speaking in the wake of yet another strong opinion poll for her party. While she said her dream is a Sinn Féin majority, she conceded it may not be possible.

A recent poll showed Sinn Féin to be the most popular party, with a five point boost in support to 37%. 

The Social Democrats and Labour had 4% each; Solidarity/People-Before-Profit remained at 2%, and support for the Green party increased by one point to 6%, the new Sunday TimesBehaviour & Attitudes poll found.  Some 51% or more of the vote is needed to form a Government.

Support for Fianna Fáil increased by one point to 21%, being the second most popular party, while Fine Gael dropped by eight points to 15%.

Ms McDonald said that housing would be the number one challenge for Sinn Féin if they were elected to Government, which would benefit both those looking for homes, and businesses looking to expand and house their workforces.

She said that housing is consistently raised as a major problem for businesses, from SMEs to the corporate world.

“What they [businesses] have consistently been telling me is that their biggest challenge now is housing. Their biggest challenge is to attract talent, keep talent, and make sure that workers can keep a roof over their heads.

Sinn Féin is absolutely determined to turn that around. We are in the business of building a prosperous economy, an economy driven by good jobs and decent wages, and the opportunity for enterprise to thrive and flourish. But unless and until the questions around housing, in particular, are met and met properly we’re going to have a society that’s in deep, deep trouble.

She said that accidental landlords and private landlords have been leaving the market for the past six years throughout Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael governments. High property prices are driving that exit as people want to realise the value of their assets, she said.

“The important thing is that the State, the local authorities, the Government, is in a position to intervene when those properties are being sold with families, young children, single people, older people [in situ], that the State can step in, acquire those properties and ensure that people do not lose the roof over their head.

“Thousands of families are facing the prospect of eviction and homelessness. Shame on the Government that has allowed that to happen.” 

She dismissed comments made by Taoiseach Leo Varadkar that first-time buyers should be “very worried” by a Sinn Féin government, which may not retain current schemes introduced to help homebuyers.

“Tell Leo that first-time buyers and those continuing to rent are very fearful of the continuance of a Fine Gael-led government,” Ms McDonald said.

“We’ve all seen the consequences of that — sky-high property prices, rents that are extortionate not just in big cities but right across the country, and homeless figures that are shameful in a republic, in an affluent country.

“And a government that lifts an eviction ban knowing that families will suffer.

A Sinn Féin Government will build houses. The scale is immense but it can be met. We have public land, we have service land, we have resources. The current government even argue that money is not the problem. The issue is political will and political policy. The State has to do the heavy lifting on this and of course private developers have to build, that’s part of the mix.

“But for a generation and more now, Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil governments have stepped back. The State has failed to meet its obligations, they have relied solely on private developers and that is what has brought us to this catastrophe. So we need a government that will now turn that on its head.” 

Ms McDonald said that international workers could be part of facilitating that building boom, as international labour would continue to come to Ireland.