Irish Examiner view: Funds for a new pay deal do not exist

Health Minister Stephen Donnelly: Suggested a second lockdown may be necessary.

Stability, credibility, and resources are cornerstones of successful government. It will flounder without one and struggle grievously without two. It is more than difficult to be optimistic about a government where all three are, if not absent, then in jeopardy. 

Yet, that is the bed Micheál Martin’s coalition has, by and large, made for itself, even if the pandemic has shattered ideas on public finances and spending that seemed plausible as recently as January.