Fianna Fáil’s leader - Merit in a clean break

THE question of whether the next leader of Fianna Fáil will ever be Taoiseach is more than a moot point.

That it can even be asked underlines how low the party’s stock has fallen.

The weekend declaration from Mary Hanafin that she would stand against Micheál Martin in a leadership race adds to speculation that always surrounds these matters and confirms, as if it was needed, that Taoiseach Brian Cowen’s race is run.

Just before Christmas Junior Minister Conor Lenihan suggested that the leadership might skip a generation, leaving those who supported Bertie Ahern’s delusions to wonder about what might have been.

This suggestion has its merits, though senior ministers might not agree, but a clean break with the Haughey/Ahern eras might be good for Fianna Fáil and Ireland.