Micheál Martin criticises Varadkar's strategy on confidence-and-supply

Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin has again rebuffed Taoiseach Leo Varadkar's appeal for talks on an extension of the confidence-and-supply agreement for up to two years, saying he would enter talks only towards the end of the year, as specified in the original agreement.

Last week, the Taoiseach wrote to Mr Martin seeking talks before the budget on an extension of the agreement in the interests of stability during the Brexit negotiations, in a letter Mr Varadkar published yesterday on his Twitter account.

However, Mr Martin replied to the Taoiseach yesterday saying he would not open talks on an extension before the budget, in a letter that was also published.

Last night the two parties exchanged barbs on the issue, with Fine Gael Ministers calling on Fianna Fáil to provide stability, and Fianna Fáil front benchers accusing the Government of trying to manoeuvre for an early election.

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In his letter to Mr Martin last Friday, the Taoiseach said much had changed since the agreement reached in April 2016, including the UK’s impending exit from the European Union and the power-sharing collapse at Stormont.

The economy continued to grow alongside “concerns about overheating with growing downside economic risks due to international developments”, he wrote.

However, despite record levels of spending, the State is struggling to make improvements to healthcare while the housing crisis persists, Mr Varadkar added.

“Without doubt, there is more to do. It is my strong view that a government cannot function or work in the interests of the people if it is living on borrowed time . . . Such uncertainty weakens our hand in Brexit talks, domestic negotiations, and of course those opposed or resistant to reform are simply more likely to wait us out.”

Mr Varadkar argued such a scenario “would not be in the interests of citizens, taxpayers or users of our public services”, adding that in the interests of certainty the two parties should agree on a general election date for the summer of 2020.

“I am ready to appoint a team to commence negotiations immediately,” he said.

Budget

However, Fianna Fáil insisted that there would be no talks on a renewal of the agreement until after the budget, due on October 9th, had been concluded. The parties are scheduled to begin talks on the budget today.

Speaking in Brussels, where he was meeting the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier, Mr Martin said he was “somewhat surprised by the way the Taoiseach has gone about this”. He said it was “not an appropriate way to conduct serious negotiations”.

Fianna Fáil reiterated that it would abide by the terms of the original agreement, and review its operation, with the possibility of an extension at the end of this year.

In his letter, Mr Martin said he did not “see a reasonable basis for the statement in your letter that ‘government cannot function if it does not know if it will last from week-to-week or month-to-month’.”

“This has no grounding in our constitutional system and was not raised as an issue when the arrangement was negotiated. Indeed it would be extraordinary if we were to agree that Ministers could not be expected to do their jobs without advance assurance of a compliant Dáil,” Mr Martin wrote.

The confidence-and-supply agreement which underpins the current minority government was agreed between Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil in May 2016 and effectively ends after Budget 2019 this October, with a review process to follow thereafter.