Letters to the Editor: You can't talk to an empty chair

Pearse Doherty: "We in Sinn Féin set about trying to lead a new government and we spoke with all parties that would talk to us."

Dear Sir,

A recent correspondent to your newspaper (Mike Carey, June 10) asked what did Sinn Féin do to form a government.

In February, after a century of power being carved-up between the old parties of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil, people voted for a change of government.

We in Sinn Féin set about trying to lead a new government and we spoke with all parties that would talk to us; including the Green Party, the Social Democrats, the Labour Party, Solidarity-People Before Profit and a range of other Independents.

Unfortunately others chose otherwise. Despite Sinn Féin making it clear - before, during and after the general election - that we would talk to everyone about government formation, Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil refused to talk to us and those two parties colluded to exclude Sinn Féin - and the people who vote for us - from government formation talks. You can't talk to an empty chair.

The prospect now of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael in government together - no matter who they are propped up by - does not represent the change that people voted for and will not deliver for workers and families.

Is mise le meas,

Pearse Doherty TD,

Dáil Eireann,