FIANNA FÁ IL:FIANNA FÁIL leader Micheál Martin last night insisted he is not conceding election defeat despite one of his backbenchers admitting the party is "going to be in opposition".
With growing opinion poll evidence that his party is heading for the opposition benches, Mr Martin told party workers during a visit to Waterford that the campaign is a “challenging” one for Fianna Fáil, but said a lot could happen in the next week.
There was “a widening chasm between Fine Gael and Labour”, Mr Martin said earlier in New Ross, Co Wexford. The electorate “deserve to know what programme would be implemented in a subsequent government, if certain parties were to go together,” he said.
Outgoing Waterford TD Brendan Kenneally told local members they had to be realistic and urged them to do all they could to ensure he retained his Dáil seat.
“We’re not codding ourselves here,” he said. “We know we’re not going to be in government. We know we’re going to be in opposition but we have to have a credible opposition and the only way we’re going to have a credible opposition is by having as many Fianna Fáil TDs as possible and that means we have to have a Fianna Fáil TD in Waterford.”
Afterwards, Mr Martin told reporters he did not agree with Mr Kenneally’s assessment.
“My view right throughout this election campaign has been about maximising the Fianna Fáil seats and maximising the Fianna Fáil vote so I’m not conceding anything at this stage. We’re working extremely hard.”
During the 2007 election campaign “there was a significant shift in the last week”, he said. “In the next seven days . . . we expect an all-out effort to enhance our vote. I would say that when I took over the leadership of the party I was conscious it was not just for the election campaign, but that it was beyond that.
“The party will be entering a phase of renewal, of rebuilding the party, and I very much want to say to people, particularly our former supporters who may be thinking something else this time or who may not have made up their mind – I would appeal to them to come and join me in terms of revitalising the party, renewing the party for the future.”
He refused to discuss any possibility of entering government with Fine Gael if the issue arose: “I’m not looking at it in terms of who’s going in with who . . . because the issues are so grave that face the Irish people, every political party should be putting forward detailed, credible programmes. I think the problem with Fine Gael is their expenditure programme is deliberately vague.”