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LAST UPDATE | 11 Dec 2024
THE INITIAL TALKS on the future programme for government between Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have been described as “positive and constructive”.
Both parties negotiating teams met in Government Buildings today.
Following today’s discussions, the two parties agreed to engage further on issues over the coming days.
Taoiseach Simon Harris and members of his negotiating team also met with representatives with Social Democrats this afternoon.
“We are very grateful for the opportunity to sit down with the Social Democrats today to discuss a number of key policy areas,” Harris said.
“I am very respectful of their party process and I look forward to hearing from them in the coming days.”
The Social Democrats deputy party leader Cian O’Callaghan said this evening that the parliamentary party will meet to discuss their next steps in government formation talks, stating that a decision on whether to progress will be made tomorrow.
Following the meeting with Harris, O’Callaghan said climate measures was a sticking point for the Social Democrats.
Earlier this morning, Harris said Independents are “very serious” about wanting to be the third partner in a potential coalition with Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil.
The Fine Gael leader was speaking to media before the final cabinet meeting of the year this morning. He said that there is a “clear way” for his party and Fianna Fáil to form a government, but that a majority is needed.
“That’s why the third element of the [next] government is really important. It seems to me, from my initial engagements, that Independents are very serious about wanting to be a part of that,” Harris said.
He added that he wants to see a coalition formed “ideally before” US President-elect Donald Trump is sworn into office on 20 January, but stressed that all parties, including Fine Gael, must first seek a mandate from members to do so.
TD Michael Lowry, of the Regional Independent group, confirmed today that he has been invited to meet with Fine Gael’s Helen McEntee and Fianna Fáil’s Jack Chambers early next week to discuss and agree the structure and parameters for the group’s engagement in government formation talks.
Arising from those discussions the Regional Group’s will appoint their negotiators.
Asked today if he will be the next Taoiseach, Micheál Martin said Fianna Fáil will continue its discussions with other parties first. He noted, however, that he has been clear, since before the election, that he would like to be leader of the country.
Martin said he was aware that the public are anxious for discussions to wrap up quickly so a government can be formed soon. He did not say, however, if an agreement would be made by January.
“I respect the talks process and we’ll see what transpires,” he told reporters.
Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are meeting the Social Democrats today, separately, as government formation negotiations continue. Last week the Social Democrats ruled out a joint negotiating platform with its fellow left party Labour.
Though the party are serious about entering government, the Social Democrats has found itself embroiled in scandal – before TDs could take their seats – after newly-elected Eoin Hayes was suspended after he gave incorrect details about when he sold shares he held in a software firm that supplies technology to the Israeli Defence Forces.
Asked about the controversy, and whether it would impact today’s discussions, the Fianna Fáil leader said: “It’s a matter for the Social Democrats.”
“I’d have observations on that later but I think, for today’s meeting, we’ll focus on policy and substance.”
While there have been reports of a split within Labour as to whether or not the party should seek to enter a coalition with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, The Journal understands that there is now a “sense of uniformity” in the view that the party should not enter into government.
The Irish Independent has separately reported today that leader Ivana Bacik has internally ruled out going into government with Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil without the Social Democrats.
A final meeting with Labour’s governing council and members will take place this week where the party will decide its next move, a spokesperson said yesterday. The party is viewed as the only alternative to Independents for the third party in the next coalition.
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I wouldn’t exactly be excited to be endorsed by Taylor Swift. Pass the bucket..
@Andrew Kenny: I’d be on the same page as you but there’s a 300 million younger vote in the US so her word will definitely impact on Trumps campaign so it definitely carries weight.
@Tony Skillington: 300million ?
@Tony Skillington: 300 million? Did everyone get Botox?
@Andrew Kenny: I would if I welcomed support from her huge fan base.
@Tony Skillington: average age of her concert goers is 40+. Taylor has outlined her reasons and research behind the decision to endorse Harris, not that any of you would care to read them.
@Tony Skillington: In 2020 there was 168.31 million people registered to vote in the US. Sure the total population is around 345 million…… Did you get mixed up with the amount of worldwide followers she has or something?…..
The general jist of what you’re saying is right
@another one? what’s going on is the semi state sec: No. It’s completely wrong.
@Brendan O’Brien: Are you a numpty Trump supporter? In which case everything that anyone says against him is wrong, not just anyone on here!
@Brendan O’Brien: Good man Brendan. Get out of the wrong side of the bed this morning?!?!
@Andrew Kenny: It’s great to see even as a non-Swiftie! Not my bag but hugely influential. The Trump’s of the world have had the run of the place for too long. Male, stale and beyond the pale, in his case. Stick together sisters and bring the old guard down! I don’t agree with everything Harris stands for but she’s not so much an upgrade as hi-tech cutting-edge futurism beside the cat-crazed mob.
See comments closed on fine gael always open for the shinners how come
@John Kenny: the Churno is a mouth piece for FFG, no mystery really
@John Kenny: Because I said so.
@John Kenny: they closed the article where FG want to bring in public-funded childcare!!! Socialist childcare!!! From a party that’s supposed to be for privatisation/capitalism!!!
@Brendan O’Brien: no just your mammy
@John Kenny: why type words can make no sense question mark.
Means little. Americans with a brain like Elon Musk are voting for Trump in November.
@cup of tea: the only winner of last nights debate was Vovager 1, the furthest thing from Earth.
@cup of tea: You mean most Americans with half a brain will vote for Trump. Elon Musk may be intelligent but he has no compassion or empathy, which may be part of his autism. Just watch the way he fired people at Twitter – there are even videos of him doing it. If he is the type of leader which encompasses Trump thinking then Attila the Hun would be considered a nice chap.
@Con Cussed: musk has Asperger’s not autism. And they way he fired those twitter employees was proven right. Twitter still ran without a hitch.
@Shane Kinsella (Kinsey): Aspergers was classed as a type of autism.
Twitter has lost half its value since Muskys takeover.
And Twitter even DDoSed itself.
@cup of tea: What’s wrong with his brain
I knew she was trouble when she walked in
Not supporter of trump or Harris but if a person young or old need to follow some pop star to help them to decide who to vote for well that is a sad state of affairs for that person who can’t think for themselves.
@Ned: If you actually read her statement she did not tell people to vote for Harris. She told people to look at what both candidates and decide for themselves who to vote for. What she recommended her followers was for them to make sure they register to vote.
@Patrick Hamill: her intent was to drag her fans who can’t think for themselves to vote for Harris that is so obvious even you should see that
Genuine question: if a man gets a woman pregnant should the man have a say in what happens to the foetus, unborn child, sprog, spawn, or whatever people want to label the result.
@AnthonyK: No: it’s the woman’s body, she she ultimately decides.
@AnthonyK: ‘so she’, I meant.
@AnthonyK: “or whatever people want to label the result’.” Wow.
@Brendan O’Brien: Stay on topic.
@AnthonyK: Yep, as soon as men get pregnant…
@AnthonyK: no
@AnthonyK: Genuine answer: Ideally the man should be allowed state his case. But be shouldn’t ever be allowed to dictate what a woman does with her body.
@AnthonyK: No, it’s the womans body.
@AnthonyK: what if the man feels like he’s a woman now surely that’ll give him rights he can argue he has very same rights as a woman then with equality crap.
She was criticised because she’s friends with someone who “liked” a Trump comment on social media. So there are sad people who actually check on what comments people like. The inquisition has returned.
Meanwhile being endorsed by a singer is a major thing! Granted Harris is a better choice than Trump (so is my cat). But the dumbing down of politics is rather worrying.
@Frank: It was probably forced into peoples “news” feed by the algorithms used on these social media platforms.
Haven’t seen any posts from buster this morning
@Michael o Dwyer: that’s probably him pretending to be Brendan O Brien
@Michael o Dwyer: Trolls gonna troll. He’ll be the first to whine like his Daddy when trolling closes down more comment sections.
@Jack Hayes: You’re the only one whining here, lady.
@Michael o Dwyer: probably gone to bed to cover his head. Can’t believe what happened last night.
@Mike: So you don’t understand the meaning of ‘whining’ then?
@Jack Hayes: Keep on moaning, girl. It’s entertaining.
@Mike: Add moaning to the list of things you don’t understand. Calling me ‘girl’ is great. You’re another low IQ, low info Dim Bulb and you’re not afraid to hide it.
@Jack Hayes: Fix me a sammich, lady! And hurry t fk up.
I wish trump would clear up one thing? Are the Dems talentless, incompetent bunglers or are they complex, genius, masterminds?
I bet the Trump supporters onhere believe they are both.
@Louis Jacob: You just reminded me of this paragraph from an article I read recently about Trump supporters – Boebert took the opportunity to boast on Trump’s behalf about one of his favorite topics: his supreme intelligence—as evidenced by the fact that, as Trump loves to mention, he allegedly once “aced” some cognitive test.
But here’s what Boebert actually said: “President Trump, when he was in office, underwent testing for his cognitive dissonance.”
You couldn’t make up those types of slips…….
@Tricia G28: Lol. I have to say I’m addicted to Boebert videos. She’s straight out of Monty Python.
@Louis Jacob: Sounds like she’s a lot smarter than yourself!
@Con Cussed: Good one.
Taylor Swift, well, maybe. Let’s hope she doesn’t get endorsed by Bouncey, Pinky, Dolly and the other pretentious “feminists”. That would sink her with a lot of voters!
@Padraig O’Brien: Ok. You’re one of those types of people ….
It never stops amazing how so called alfa males worship every hateful lie the crying orange thing spouts out ,
have your say