Micheál Martin's leadership 'safe as houses' for the time being, say Fianna Fáil TDs

Multiple TDs said while the disastrous presidential campaign had heavily damaged Taoiseach Micheál Martin, they did not foresee an immediate challenge to his leadership.

Embattled Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin is "safe as houses" for now, but his leadership will suffer "death by 1,000 cuts" following a report into the Jim Gavin presidential fiasco, party insiders have predicted.

The report found Taoiseach Micheál Martin met with the former Dublin football manager and told him he could not recommend Fianna Fáil continue to back him due to the revelations over €3,300 owed to a former tenant.

It adds that Mr Gavin was asked about a dispute with a tenant on September 5 and September 8, following inquiries from a newspaper to Mr Martin’s top advisor Deirdre Gillane and the Fianna Fáil press office.

Cork South Central TD Seamus McGrath said his party should now “draw a line” under the presidential election.

“The time for recriminations is over. We need to move on and learn lessons,” Mr McGrath said. 

Mistakes were made. We need to move forward and learn from those mistakes.

Mr McGrath called for changes to be made in how the party nominates its presidential candidate in the future, while also calling for wider consultation with parliamentary party members.

Speaking privately, multiple TDs said while the disastrous presidential campaign had heavily damaged Mr Martin, they did not foresee an immediate challenge to his leadership.

“Death by 1,000 cuts,” one TD said.

However, several TDs did caveat this with the possibility Mr Martin could face a challenge if any significant issues arise within Government, rather than within Fianna Fáil.

One TD said they struggled to see how rebels would be able to reach the requisite 12 TDs to sign a no-confidence motion in the leader at present.

“He’s safe as houses,” they said.

Several TDs did say they believed Mr Martin could be challenged for his leadership at the end of Ireland’s EU presidency next year.

On the meeting itself, there was criticism levelled at the Taoiseach, but Senator Aidan Davitt joked: “Taoiseach, you are under a lot of pressure. I’d say you’re like a Mayo footballer, you wish you never heard of Jim Gavin.”

During the hours-long meeting, sources said there were several individuals who said Fianna Fáil needed to have a new direction of leadership.

It was mentioned by both John McGuinness and Senator Niall Blaney.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, Fianna Fáil MEP Cynthia Ní Mhurchú slated the report into Mr Gavin’s campaign, branding it “unsatisfactory” and a “missed opportunity”.

“The barrister in me would have advised that this should have been explored further, including engaging directly with the journalists who raised the matter,” she said.

The focus now must be on learning from these errors and fully implementing the report’s recommendations.

The MEP said the report also contained “minor inaccuracies” about her interest in the election, including incorrect dates and the omission of certain emails, texts and phone calls.

The meeting itself was described as being “tense”, while another said there was an “uneasiness” in the room.

This was raised privately by another TD, who said there were a “lot of people annoyed at the lack of detail”.