The PDs’ future - Cannon faces a huge task

THOUGH maybe not quiet as daunting as being made a Wehrmacht field marshal deep in the cold steppes of Stalin’s Soviet Union in, say, 1943, assuming leadership of the Progressive Democrats bring its own challenges.

Senator Ciaran Cannon has already acknowledged this, conceding that the results of next year’s local elections will decide whether the party has a meaningful future or if it is to fade away, becoming no more than a pin-striped, high-horse talking shop for grumpy old conservatives.

Whether the party has the vitality, belief, or indeed unity — it was split 51%:49% between the Cannon and O’Malley camps in the leadership vote — to rejuvenate itself also remains to be seen. The high-profile and immediate ship-jumping after last year’s election suggests this may be the greatest internal challenge it faces.

Whether it has ambitions beyond being a prop in the never-ending Fianna Fáil government, accepting portfolios no senior Fianna Fáil politician would envy, is also open to question.

Whether more than low, single-figure percentages of voters are prepared to continue to vote for the “watchdog” Progressive Democrats, while, in effect, all they are doing is voting for Fianna Fáil at a one-step remove, is also open to question.

In the past few days the country has been fortunate enough to be able to remember and honour a political career — President Patrick Hillery’s — which was rooted in public service, reform, courage, modesty, dignity and not inconsiderable vision.

These are some of the values that, along with the persona of Charles Haughey, informed the establishment of the Progressive Democrats. If Mr Cannon can make values like these the guiding principles of his greatly reduced party it may have a future. If not why bother?