Opinion poll – Government on the verge of revolt

THE latest national public opinion poll, published in yesterday’s Sunday Business Post, indicates a further drop of 1% in support for Fianna Fáil.

If the 34% support were replicated in a general election, the party would likely lose 15 to 20 seats, especially as they cannot depend on much support from its coalition partner, the Progressive Democrats, who are stuck at a lowly 3%.

Since this Government first came to power in 1997, the country has enjoyed unprecedented prosperity, but the Government essentially inherited the fundamentals of this booming economy. It also inherited corruption scandals that have been exposed at the various tribunals.

The recent death of Charles J Haughey was a potent reminder of the ongoing scandals. Moreover, the Government was hardly helped by the disclosure that the late Taoiseach believed the current coalition is “the worst government in the history of the State”.

The debate about his overall contribution to Irish politics may continue for years. The Sunday Business Post/Red C poll found people almost evenly divided, with 43% believing that the good that Mr Haughey did outweighed the bad, but 41% believe the reverse.

Coming so soon after his death, there is probably a certain sympathy factor built into that finding, and the negative view could soon outweigh the positive. There is no doubt whatever that he did do wrong.

Nobody in his or her right mind could think justice is being done, much less being seen to be done, in relation to the graft and corruption exposed at the various tribunals throughout the lifetime of this Government. This is an appalling failure on the part of the Coalition, on top of its failure to rectify many of the other continuing problems.

The number of deaths on our roads continues to climb, despite much-hyped promises. Serious problems within the health service persist. These demonstrate that merely throwing money at problems will not solve them. There is also the incredible bungling and squandering of money in relation to the ineffectual electronic voting machines; the growth of gun crimes continues to plague our society, and there was incredible bungling surrounding the recent statutory rape crisis.

Unrest is already apparent within the backbenches of Fianna Fáil and throughout the Progressive Democrats. Mary Harney may well have promised to step down before the next election, but if Michael McDowell believed that she promised to hand over the PD leadership to him, this betrays astounding arrogance combined with a frightening naivety.

Anyone knowing even the basic fundamentals of democracy should realise that handing over the leadership is not in the power of the leader of any democratic party. The new leader must be elected.

Michael McDowell must have known this, but he allowed the situation to be confused by getting into the unseemly squabble in the first place.

The uneasiness on the Government backbenches has been largely about the arrogance of certain cabinet members towards their own deputies and the public at large. If those ministers do not change their attitude, the unrest could soon develop into a revolt.