All is not lost for this Labour Party

The resignation of Nessa Childers from the Parliamentary Labour Party is likely to fuel further uneasiness within that party.

The government unquestionably inherited a mess, and it is in danger of allowing this to become its own mess if it does not tackle the more outrageous abuses that have been coming to light.

As the daughter of the late President Erskine H Childers, Nessa Childers raised many eyebrows when she joined the Labour Party in 2004. Her father had enjoyed a distinguished career as a Fianna Fáil deputy from 1938 until 1973, during which he served 17 years in cabinet and rose to become Tánaiste in 1969, before going on to be elected the fourth President of Ireland in 1973.