Why is a pre-election pact so unpalatable?

Are we looking at a straight choice between an eventual Sinn Féin led Government?

Or something else? Most pundits ( and not a few ordinary citizens), agree that short of a seismic or miraculous change in support figures, the most likely Government to emerge after the General Election will be a Fianna Fáil /Fine Gael /Labour minority Government — with independent ( and/or ‘new party’), participation or support.

No combination of any two of the ‘old’ parties will reach the magic 79 seats. Even the super-rainbow outlined above will need some heavy welding to hammer it together.

Despite their constant bleating of their ‘irrefutable’ differences, there are no fundamental differences on basic policy.

So, if this is what we are going to get ‘anyway’, why not ‘formulate’ and announce now — formally — the basic common policy to which they already adhere to informally?

Pick an agreed date for the general election. Pick one which suits the national interest. Not one which is determined by ‘events’; let alone ‘accidents’.

Settle the fine print and the composition of the Cabinet once the voters have allocated the Dáil seats. This is how many civilised and common sense countries do it.

Maurice O’Connell

Fenit

Tralee

Co Kerry