Kenny is up for the fight

THERE are 35 weeks ahead of us in which we will find out a lot about Enda Kenny. About his wherewithal. About his competence as a leader. About his credibility as a potential Taoiseach of the country. About his winnability.

Come June, he will have either emulated the achievement of Garrett Fitzgerald. Or he will have joined Alan Dukes, John Bruton and Michael Noonan in the pantheon of ultimate FG losers.

You meet Kenny in his third-floor room in a Sligo Hotel with the Yeatsian landscape of North Sligo and Ben Bulben dominating the view. It’s a glorious sunny day and its brightness is matched by his disposition.