Is 'weathervane' Fine Gael really able to bring the wind of change under Harris?

Simon Harris has inherited a party that is everything and nothing, indistinct and profoundly bland, with the sole objective of winning elections

The problem with Simon Harris, and Fine Gael more generally, is that they seem to have no conception of the structural inequalities at the heart of Irish society, of the sense of hopelessness experienced by far too many people. Picture: Eamon Ward/PA

There are two types of political parties. The first type is the ‘principled party’. This party is old-fashioned: it is defined by a distinctive philosophy, which it promotes and defends notwithstanding of electoral success. 

People Before Profit–Solidarity and Aontú are two extreme examples: two parties that enter the political arena resigned to being in opposition, picking up small crumbs at each electoral turn, but content to fly the flag of their ideological stance.

The other type of party is the ‘weathervane party’. More modern and unscrupulous, it concocts its policies depending on the way the political wind is blowing. 

The weathervane party has only one objective: to win elections. Its principal goal is to control the levers of power and rewards its supporters and lackeys. This type of party is not bothered by philosophical beliefs or ideological principles. 

Fine Gael is a perfect example of the weathervane party, although it is certainly not the only one on the scene: the three major parties in Ireland today all share the same DNA.

Sooner or later, all weathervane parties enter a crisis. At some point, voters no longer know why they should vote for them since they don’t know what these parties stand for. 

That’s understandable, considering weathervane parties don’t know themselves what they believe in, apart from political power. Without a clear philosophy as a backbone, weathervane parties are spineless. Voters demand and deserve better.

This is the predicament Simon Harris finds himself in. He has inherited a party that is everything and nothing, indistinct and profoundly bland. Without a clear philosophy to guide it through lean times, all weathervane parties eventually get found out. Fine Gael is not an exception, in spite of its historical pedigree.

Coming out of the traps at flashing speed the instant Leo Varadkar announced his resignation, Simon Harris proclaimed his government would be one of "equality of opportunity". 

If this is Simon Harris’s best effort to remind his dwindling voters of Fine Gael’s grounding philosophy, then his party is in even bigger trouble than we thought.

Equality of opportunity is a notoriously vague principle, open to many interpretations, a black box from which people can draw the most diverse policies. Perhaps that’s why Simon Harris picked this concept: true to his party’s weathervane lifeblood, Simon Harris couldn’t resist a high-sounding term that could mean whatever the voters want it to mean.

Judging from his comments in the last few weeks, one can safely assume Simon Harris embraces this understanding of equality of opportunity. A vote for Fine Gael would pave the way for more free-market, less government intervention, more market solutions to social problems, which is precisely what Ireland doesn’t need right now. Picture: PA

In political philosophy, we distinguish between two radically opposed conceptions of equality of opportunity. One interpretation suggests opportunities are equal when, in a race, everyone starts from the same starting line and may the best person win. 

Equality of opportunity is nothing more than an attempt to legitimise meritocracy under a veneer of equality. Superficially, there is nothing wrong with rewarding effort, except that in life there is no such thing as a level-playing field. 

Social, economic, and natural contingencies will inevitably benefit some and penalise others, and effort cannot compensate for circumstances beyond one’s control. Equality of opportunity, far from being egalitarian, thrives on and exasperates structural inequalities. 

Meritocracy is a convenient excuse to make the rich richer and the poorer more marginalised.

Judging from his comments in the last few weeks, one can safely assume Simon Harris embraces this understanding of equality of opportunity. A vote for Fine Gael would pave the way for more free-market, less government intervention, more market solutions to social problems, which is precisely what Ireland doesn’t need right now. 

It is the blind trust in the magic powers of market forces that has created the worst housing crisis in living memory.

The other interpretation of equality of opportunity takes equality seriously. An opportunity to do or obtain something exists for me if and only if there is some course of action lying within my power and not simply depending on my will. 

This is a crucial distinction. People have certain mental and physical capacities at any given time and no "effort of will" can overcome the limits imposed by these capacities. 

Some people cannot, merely by an effort of will, completely transform their personalities or circumstances. True equality of opportunity is about empowerment, it’s about giving everyone a chance to improve themselves and fulfil their potential, starting with those who are less advantaged.

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The problem with Simon Harris, and Fine Gael more generally, is that he seems to have no conception of the structural inequalities at the heart of Irish society, of the sense of hopelessness experienced by far too many people expected to compete for school places and houses and jobs with others who enjoy vast undeserved privileges and advantages.

In the forthcoming local and European elections, and in the imminent Dáil elections, the wind of change may prove to be too strong for weathervane parties to appease.

• Dr Vittorio Bufacchi is senior lecturer in philosophy at University College Cork