Labour has always existed at around 10% of the vote. It’s wishful thinking to say they’ll just disappear. It’s gonna take a vote drop well into single digits to wipe them out completely.

@fiona. It’s just an observation. Nothing else. I think of they go below 7% then internal conflict will arise when splinter groups will form. If that happens its a sad state affairs knowing well the ideology and goals of its founders.

Predictive text and miscommunication go hand in hand. :)

Good.
I hope labour cease to exist come next election.
They have been the biggest disappointment.
We expect the likes of FF/FG To screw the people.
Labour have shown their through colours by sticking by them.
The people’s party my foot

I’d rather see labour the FF to be honest. As long as Gilmore is ousted.

No Harm with the way they have carried on

“Gilmore for Taoiseach”? Oh, how quickly things change!
If Gilmore even gets elected as a TD in the next election, he will be very lucky. The same goes for Rabbitte.
Pat Rabbitte admitted that Labour lied ["Isn't that what you tend to do during an election?"] in the run up to the last election during an interview with Sean O’Rourke.

Surely we must have the worst calibre of politicians in the world. How in Gods name do most of them get elected? Watching them trying to come across as intelligent individuals makes me cringe. Phil Hogan just has to be the most mentally challenged human being that’s ever been part of a Government anywhere. Then you have village idiot impersonators like the Healy Rae’s. it’s completely embarrassing. And that’s before we even begin to talk about the criminals that sit in Dáil Éireann. That’s a very long list indeed. Mick Wallace admits to grand scale theft, and he’s still a TD! Where else would that nonsense be tolerated? But surely the fact that a complete thick like Lucinda Creighton can become a TD says it all.

FF screw the Irish peope through corruption and criminality, FG just do it legally. Paddy still gets screwed. 2 Parties that are so staid, outdated and institutionalized that they are incapable of acting in the national interest.

There’s always a choice. One option is for everyone to not vote. Or to vote for anyone but the main parties. This would wipe out the current corrupt parties and change the political attitude. These guys do not represent the people who voted for them and it would be foolish to vote any of these guys again.

DDI google them

I don’t think DDI is the way forward either, putting more direct power into the hands of the general population strikes me as potentially catastrophic. We’re talking about the same electorate who keep voting for Fianna Fáil and Fianna Gael after all.

I do think it’s great that they are trying something new though.

This is the 4th time in my father’s life that FF have bankrupted the country and driven hundreds of thousands of our people on to the dole que and hundreds more to emigrate. Between emigration and unemployment nearly a million people will have their lives changed due to their corruption and incompetence and yet they are still scoring in the early 20% in a poll.

Is it just badness or ignorance that drives their voter base. Traitors.

Absolutely. Returning Ireland to the markets, getting a reduction in our interest rates, fostering growth, reducing our deficit, stemming unemployment, restoring Ireland’s international reputation while sending the Troika packing and restoring our economic sovereignty….Fine Gael are ruining this country. I don’t know how they can sleep at night.

How about their Kamikazee, pie in the sky, I’ll conceived, downright dangerous economic policies?

ill conceived

Micheal Martin will never address them, there is too much for him to loose.

*are

New focus, like property taxes and water charges in Northern Ireland?

Spare us the spin, Sinn Féin would be just like the rest of them. At least the present lot know a thing or two about economics and don’t have any links to organisations of questionable legality!

Fiona change the record. only for sinn fein the body count would still be rising. All other parties have shown themselves to be totally inept. I say give them a chance and let them try their policies out then judge them as a political party instead of “questioning the legality” of the party. FF et al have contributed to a serious amounts of deaths in this country with their cuts and taxes that sent too many unfortunates over the edge. Its time for a change.

You are possibly right.

That to my mind is akin to saying, pox is on the rise, great to see.

It’s not great. It’s a sad reflection on our politics that people feel the need to vote for a party like Sinn Féin.

Pretty bold statement Fiona considering all the other parties have basically destroyed this country and put thousands on the poverty line and are in directably responsible for deaths of people due to treacherous polices and austerity.

So shall we just have a cycle of FF/FG/LAB every few years?

Yeah and Sinn Féin have never been responsible for anyone’s death…

Austerity is with us whether we like it or not. SF haven’t laid out a credible alternative. They oppose everything but propose very little in return.

Gerry Adams as Taoiseach?

No thanks!

@itswhatitis- FF destroyed the country. End of. You mightn’t like how Labour & Fine Gael have tried to fix it, but only one party got us here in the first place.

Fiona,

If the best response you have is ‘Yeah well they were responsible for deaths also’ then you’re not fit to engage is constructive debate. Instead, why don’t you look at their polices, compare them with FF, FG, Labour and then make an informed decision. Personally, my thoughts on the whole situation is that I believe FG have had to take some tough decisions, rightly or wrong, the people will judge them in the next election. I believe this country is on the road to getting back to normalisation, it will take a long time, but baby steps! I do think Sinn Fein have good candidates, but are overshadowed and nearly discredited by Gerry et al. Similar to FG, journey men like Noonan get the nod ahead of people like Peter Matthews, and it’s a shame. But I wouldn’t rule out voting SF in the next election, we’ll see nearer the time.

One party got us there and another two parties are not only keeping us there but are also making it worse, so if you are going to blame one crowd for getting us there then you have to equally blame the current crowd for what they are doing,

Chair man,

Well what would you do? And how would you implement them? And if you say ‘Wealth Tax’, how would you make it fair and what level would it be at? A lot people criticise Government polices but cannot offer an alternative, an alternative that is realistic ?

Yeah and fg opposed every tax break and spending increase!!! Cop on they were all as bad as each other. And no I’m not a member of FF and never voted for them, but I’m not deluded to think that fg are so innocent.

Shut up Fiona, spurting the same old mantra, it’s old used up excuses you are using and by god I hope to see SF in power instead of your FGouls. Is daddy FG? All the family FG? Are you FG youth? Because NOWONE in their right mind would re-elect these backstabbing cowards to office again never mind the last shower.
I’d vote the devil in instead, see what he does then I’d have a clear balanced judgement on everyone, THEN I can make an informed decision….. Roll on election time, roll on SF, DDI or SNF….time will tell

@chairman- substantiate please how Ireland’s economic situation is worse now than it was when this Government took over.

Michael- Governments govern. They alone are responsible for what happens on their watch. They alone have the instruments of state at their disposal. Enda Kenny doesn’t get to blame any failures of this Government on Micheal Martin being poor in opposition.

Yes, I would introduce a progressive tax system. I would ensure that policies were primarily for the good of the people living in Ireland before the interests of international bankers and bondholders. I would ensure that the income gap between the highest income earners and the lowest income earners was reduced as this would benefit everyone in the country.

Chairman,

You need to try harder, could you expand on that a bit? How would this tax system work, rates, how would it be applied ?

So true FF may have made mistakes but FG/Lab supported them and now FF is returning the favor. The party whip system is a huge part of problem. DDI the new group has only viable solution

Hello unemployment poverty starvation cuts health education signed up to pay more bonds where have you been are you totally deluded 40 businesses a week closing

Sol bank – unemployment has stabilised, the cuts you mentioned are because of inherited debts, not new ones and an agreement to cut our deficit signed with the Troika by FF. The promisory note deal merely secured the country better payback terms. The state was already committed to paying them back. You have every right to blame this Government for things they’ve done wrong, but its futile to lambast them over the legacy they inherited. On the other hand, we’re paying less interest on our loans, the Troika is on its way out, our reputation has been restored, employment is beginning to grow, the economy is performing better than the EU average and our deficit is falling. So I ask again- how exactly can it be argued that the Irish economy is getting worse? Facts have to have some place surely in this debate?

Was at a talk last night with Constantine G and Michael Taft. Both brilliant economists would disagree with you the level of debt we have and the level of personal debt we have is most likely leading to default on sovereign. It is not sustainable.

This country has another few austerity budgets to go through and we have been described as heading down the roads towards where Greece is.

And what is this I hear about your government bailing out a big media corporation in debt of 400 million we the tax payers are giving them 100 million. Ah NO ! Ask your government to disclose details please that’s if my comment stays up ?

Intrigued adelle….more info

Adelle wins!

Whatever happened David McWilliams? He was the economist of choice for the left for so long? You never hear of him any more. Must be paying the price for advising our FF heroes to guarantee the banks. As I recall our friend Constantin was adamant also that we’d need a second bailout. How did that prophecy work out? He’s no Mystic Meg. Given a choice between celebrity economists making a lot of money from promoting “the End is Nigh!” and the broader international community which believes we’re making good progress, I’ll go with the latter.

He/she who controls the media wins. The Irish are suckers for spin ;)

Very true.

Kevin you really have to be told things a few times don’t you, I’m not left right centre, I am an undecided voter. Actually Constantine is Right, Michael Taft is not aligning himself either way.

All their figure were right and I believe them when they say that, this is not the end ,our debt is unsustainable, austerity is not working. These are very intelligent highly trained economists. I believe them.

Judging by what they are saying I think it is SF I will vote for, they would be more up to the job. Alot of negotiating will have to be done in the future.

Chris, you really need to get out more … Talk to real people. Like them or loathe them, people are turning to SF, they are sick to death of the lies/corruption being bestowed on them by FF/FG/Labour.
No other Political party has seen such a rise in the polls in such a short few years as SF.
Why do you think that is?

I think I already answered that in my initial comment.

that is the problem all FF ever do is “sort themselves out”, by giving friends and family jobs, state adviser roles to key party men, overpaying for simple jobs to party men. Facilitating white collar crime in return for bribes and donations.

FF is a non-political party, it is just a free for all at the tax payers expense for its leading members.

That is what fg and labour are doing in government

Why