Micheál Martin rules out Fianna Fáil coalition with Sinn Féin

The FF leader was speaking as the election got underway in earnest, with Labour and PBP launching elements of their campaigns

Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin speaks to the media outside Leinster House, flanked by Senators Mary Fitzpatrick and Catherine Ardagh,  and Jim O'Callaghan TD. Picture: Gareth Chaney/PA 

Fianna Fáil has ruled out a future coalition with Sinn Féin, as the general election campaign got underway in earnest on Friday.

Outside Leinster House, Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin was emphatic in his rejection of the party as a government partner.