Blind to reality - FG ignore growing inequity

Fine Gael might dismiss The Sunday Times poll that put the party on 23%, five points behind Fianna Fáil, as a consequence of being in government for almost a decade but that would be a grave error of judgement.

No matter how it is dressed up, FG has presided over deepening inequity and a relentless concentration of wealth. Banks pay no taxes on profits though pensioners are offered no such relief on huge pension fund losses; unregulated global real estate funds enjoy “preferential tax laws” to build up property portfolios while workers can only dream about buying a home; privileged sectors enjoy enhanced privilege to feed their sense of entitlement.

The social housing and health crises underline this too — as does FG’s default position of putting economic growth before environmental responsibility. Charges that this is a tax haven ring all too true as well.

FG’s difficulty is that they are, as Peter McVerry warned, ideologically incapable of recognising these huge, divisive shifts but the real difficulty is that neither do the alternative governments.

Answers on a postcard please. And quickly.