Bertie Ahern casts doubt on Fine Gael coalition claim as he refuses to rule out Áras bid

Former taoiseach says Fine Gael’s insistence that it won’t enter government with Sinn Féin should be taken with a grain of salt

'I never rule anything in or out, I’m too long around to know that,' Bertie Ahern told Irish Examiner Political Editor Elaine Loughlin at the Fianna Fáil ard fheis. Picture: Leah Farrell/RollingNews

Bertie Ahern has cast doubt over Fine Gael’s insistence that it won’t enter government with Sinn Féin, saying people should “take with a grain of salt” what is said ahead of the general election.

Speaking to the Irish Examiner, the former Taoiseach has also refused to rule himself out of a tilt for Áras an Uachtaráin, revealing that he loves walking around Phoenix Park.

“I love the Áras, it’s a lovely building but there are no vacancies up there for a long time,” he said when asked if he would run for the presidency.

“I never rule anything in or out, I’m too long around to know that,” he said.

Turning to the next general election, Mr Ahern said he would favour it in mid-June but believes the coalition will stay in power until next year. 

Bertie Ahern cautions against parties ruling out coalition partners, citing the rainbow coalition formed in 1994 by Prionsias de Rossa, John Bruton, and Labour's Dick Spring after the then FG leader said to de Rossa: 'Democratic Left won’t be part of the government'. Picture: Maxwell's

However, he suggested that Fine Gael could yet form a government with Mary Lou McDonald’s party despite strongly refusing such a proposal at the moment.

“I remember when John Bruton in the election with [Proinsias] de Rossa, he said ‘well the one thing that’s certain is the Democratic Left won’t be part of the government,’ and then the election comes and they are the parties in government. 

"So between now and then people set out their stall, they tell the electorate what they prefer, they tell people what they think will be the best for the country, but in the end, people will decide.”

He added: “To be honest, I take with a fair grain of salt what’s said between now and then. The morning after the counting is over, that’s when I’ll start looking at what I think the next government will be.

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“Political leaders have an obligation to set out what their preferences are and what they’d like to see and what they think would be the best for them and for the voter, that’s fair game.

“But ultimately it is the people who decide.”

Mr Ahern said he thinks the three party leaders in the current coalition are “committed” to going the full term, but he said he would favour a summer election.

“I never liked winter elections, all of my campaigns were late May, early June. I’d be thinking more of the weather than the timing. The timing doesn’t matter a lot,” he said.