Irish Examiner View: Government hoping to shake off reputation as a do-nothing outfit

Since their presidential election campaign shambles, there have been consistent rumblings within Fianna Fáil about Micheál Martin’s leadership. Picture: Leah Farrell/RollingNews.ie

A reputation, once earned and irrespective of whether it reflects well or poorly, is an extremely hard thing to shake off.

That is the challenge for the Government in the Dáil term that began yesterday.

For better or worse, the current administration has gained an unwanted status as a do-nothing outfit, but in the coming months it will have the opportunity to shake off that tag.

To do so, it has a number of priorities — housing, infrastructure development, immigration, and the cost of living. While plans have already been put in place to tackle these issues within the last 12 months, action on them is now needed to provide tangible results.

It will be interesting to see if the so-called new left movement, which was behind Catherine Connolly’s successful presidential election campaign, can sustain a vocal, focused, and harmonious opposition. It will also be fascinating to witness how current unrest within the Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael parliamentary parties progresses.

Since their presidential election campaign shambles, there have been consistent rumblings within Fianna Fáil about Micheál Martin’s leadership. He has successfully fended these off thus far, but it has been one of those politically febrile matters that stick.

The performance of the Government in the coming Dáil terms will determine whether the damage can be reversed. Tánaiste Simon Harris also presided over an election failure in the race for the Áras and may not have an armchair ride from his own parliamentary party if pressure comes about from action and policy decisions on housing or immigration.

A dull day is a rare thing in political life, and the Government is facing into a perilous year on many fronts, domestically and internationally. The Taoiseach will have his second — potentially eventful — visit to the White House on St Patrick’s Day. He will also have Ireland’s presidency of the EU to manage in the second half of 2026, where delicate diplomacy is required, particularly so with the EU’s efforts to find a peaceful solution to the war in Ukraine.

Domestically, there are many potential pitfalls, including the Occupied Territories Bill and the proposed legislation on the triple lock. Both of these will provide the opposition with much fodder.

But housing may well be the biggest black hole this administration has to avoid falling into. If its many and varied initiatives to sort the problem out do not begin to bear fruit, then the Government will very soon run out of places to hide.

Tyndall expansion - Ambition to be Silicon Island

Tyndall chairman Denis Doyle, higher education minister James Lawless, Tyndall CEO Professor William Scanlon, and UCC president Professor John O’Halloran.

The proposed expansion of the Tyndall National Institute in Cork will present huge opportunities for both the city and the country as a whole for many years to come.

Cabinet approval for the €100m expansion, which will deliver a new 17,500sq m research facility in University College Cork, was granted yesterday and represents a huge step forward in the country’s ambition to become ‘Silicon Island’.

Delivering a new, advanced research facility in Cork, it will significantly boost this country’s capacity to develop semiconductors, artificial intelligence, and quantum and advanced manufacturing.

It is also expected to strengthen the Inspire programme’s research infrastructure and support vital collaboration with as many as 200 industry partners.

The redevelopment of the Distillery Fields site at Cork’s North Mall will accommodate an extra 250 postgraduate students and some 750 staff.

It is, without doubt, an opportunity to put Cork at the front and centre of advanced semiconductor technologies and will undoubtedly give the city and county a distinct edge as the world heads into a new phase of tech development and manufacturing.

Research at the new facility will focus on compound semiconductors, wafer-scale and chip technologies, health and wellbeing, communications, environmental sensing, and energy, as well as packaging and integration.

The combination of these factors will present Irish students and graduates with the opportunity to be at the cutting edge of new and advanced technologies, underlining the city’s role in Ireland’s version of Silicon Valley. 

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