Elaine Loughlin: Historic coalition just lurching from one calamity to another

Just 100 days in, the Government has seen the departures of two agriculture ministers and an EU commissioner, a series of embarrassing missteps around the Leaving Certificate, mixed messages on Covid-19 guidelines, and some very public infighting. Political Correspondent Elaine Loughlin casts an eye over three turbulent months

A rocky start for Taoiseach Micheál Martin. Picture: Julien Behal

Just getting through the first 100 days could be viewed as an achievement for this fire-fighting Government.

Covid-19 has dominated and altered every aspect of our political landscape and will continue to impinge on all parts of society for the foreseeable future. 

The pandemic and how it is handled, as public patience frays and the economy takes a hit, will also define this historic Government.

All new governments require a certain amount of time to bed in, but Micheál Martin’s coalition has barely been able to catch breath and has been propelled from one calamity to another at a time when stable heads and strong leadership is required.

In its first 100 days, this Government has been rocked by the resignations of two agriculture ministers over separate scandals; has witnessed the exit of an EU commissioner; has been responsible for a series of embarrassing missteps around the Leaving Certificate; and has caused confusion with mixed messages on Covid-19 guidelines; not to mention some very public infighting, catcalling, and sniping.

“It has been a very rocky start, the Government has at times looked very uncertain and very hesitant and it has rolled back on some policy commitments,” says Theresa Reidy of University College Cork.

Gary Murphy, head of the school of law and government at Dublin City University, says the global pandemic has made it almost impossible for the Government to set out any grand plan.

“The Government is constantly in crisis or in reactive mode,” he says.

“The first 100 days would normally be about the Government setting out their agenda, but Covid has made everything in Irish politics reactive as distinct from proactive. That won’t be easily resolved until a vaccine is found.” 

The coronavirus has curtailed much of the policy work and team-building that usually is seen as a key priority at the start of any term in office.

“You are not meeting people on the ministerial corridor, you are not having that interaction where you get to know each other, instead you are away working in your office and trying to limit social contacts,” one member of Government said.

But Covid-19 has not been the only issue which has stymied progress.

Internal disputes 

Fianna Fáil, and the Greens to a lesser extent, have been consumed by internal disputes and personality clashes.

After announcing his cabinet, Mr Martin faced a barrage of criticism from within his party. Willie O’Dea accused the Taoiseach of “insulting” the people of Limerick, while Michael Moynihan demanded a meeting.

“I gave it to him both barrels,” he said afterwards.

The weekly meeting of the Fianna Fáil parliamentary party has often descended into squabbling and finger pointing over media leaking and individual performances.

Then came the forced resignation of two agriculture ministers — Barry Cowen over his drink driving scandal and Dara Calleary for his attendance at the Golfgate dinner in Co Galway.

“Micheál must bare some responsibility on the Barry Cowen issue, for not knowing that about a minister he was appointing, especially one of Cowen’s profile,” says Mr Murphy. “That was a terrible misjudgment not to know that there was this skelton in the closet.” All of this came at a time when Fianna Fáil was already playing catch-up.

Fine Gael, having enjoyed the trappings of power since 2011, was well acquainted with Government Buildings and for Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney, the new coalition meant keeping his office in Iveagh House.

“When we went into government, Fine Gael were match fit, they had been in government for nine years,” said one senior Fianna Fáil member. “They knew the staff, they knew who to contact in which office and how to get around, but there was always going to be an element of that.” 

Blame the old crowd

Another tactic usually deployed by new governments is to place much of the blame on the old crowd is usually another distraction tactic deployed by new Governments. But with Fine Gael making up one leg of the three-stool coalition, that has not been an option this time around.

Of course there have been adjustments for Fine Gael too. 

Sharing power does not come easy to any political party, but ceding control must have been particularly galling for former taoiseach Leo Varadkar and his party. It required setting aside a century of civil war rivalry as well as agreeing to play second fiddle to Mr Martin.

While this may have been somewhat lost in the Covid mix, Mr Murphy says the significance of this truce, however temporary, should not be under- estimated. It is clear that tensions and distrust still bubbles under the surface and there have been complaints about Fine Gael ministers refusing to share information with their Fianna Fáil counterparts and vice versa.

Adding to the complexity has been a third party in government, the Greens.

The very decision to enter government resulted in rancor and led to the resignations of a number of high-profile members. Eamon Ryan and his Dáil colleagues will now have to prove that the risk was worth taking and must deliver on the Green agenda before they regain the trust of many of their own members.

Tough times ahead

While the first 100 days is a significant marker for any coalition, the next 100 and beyond are likely to be even more gruelling for the three parties.

“I think the Government faces a very uncertain 18 moments, not in the sense that it’s unstable, but in terms of being able to define any kind of coherent policy agenda is so difficult at the present time,” says Ms Reidy.

The coming months will require this Government to make extremely difficult decisions — the first of which must be delivered in the budget. There is no rulebook to follow when you are governing a modern, open country that relies on international trade and the flow of people through a worldwide pandemic. 

But this Government will be judged on how it steers a weary public through the next 12 months.