Voters were largely unmoved by the dramatic resignation of Leo Varadkar and the elevation of Simon Harris as Taoiseach, new poll findings show.
The Irish Times’ monthly Snapshot poll, designed to track what citizens notice and their sentiment towards significant news stories, suggests that the changeover in the Taoiseach’s office was not prominent in most people’s perceptions.
Just 7 per cent cited the change as the thing they noticed most – with a majority of people, some 62 per cent, making negative comments about it and just 35 per cent positive.
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The survey asks more than 1,000 respondents the following question: “What have you come across in what the Government has said or done recently that has made you think the country is going in the right or wrong direction?”
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The Snapshot poll shows that voters are once again noticing housing more than any other issue about the Government’s performance, with over one fifth (21 per cent) naming it as the topic that they noticed most.
The vast majority of voters who mentioned housing had a negative view of the Government’s efforts in the area – some 88 per cent, with the data suggesting the perennial crisis is of most concern to those in the age group traditionally associated with first-time buyers – those aged 25-34. Between these ages 28 per cent said housing was the thing they noticed most in the last month.
On Sunday Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said that housing remained the issue that was coming up most frequently with voters canvassed on their doorsteps, saying the country was in the “grip of a housing crisis that simply will not go away”.
Immigration remains high in people’s minds as well – although it has declined two points to 12 per cent from last month. Again the perception of the coalition’s efforts in this area is mostly negative, with 76 per cent making negative comments to pollsters.
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