Burton urges voters to avoid hung Dáil and back the coalition

Labour leader Joan Burton has again urged voters to back the coalition in a bid to avoid a hung Dail which could cause a second election this year or a political crisis similar to Greece and Spain.

The Tánaiste made said the situation "is not something I would recommend", after the first national opinion poll taken since the election campaign officially began reinforced concerns there will be no clear result from the February 26 vote.

According to a poll this morning, Fine Gael are on 30%, Labour 8%, Fianna Fáil 18% and Sinn Féin 17%, with Independents taking 15% of further votes.

The current standing means no realistic combination of parties is close to forming a majority, other than a 'grand coalition' of Fine Gael/Fianna Fáil.

If this translates into an actual election result, it would cause a hung Dáil and potentially see two elections this year.

However, speaking at the launch of her party's childcare policy today, Ms Burton said the result is "not something I would recommend" as it could cause instability like that currently being experienced in Greece and Spain.

The Tánaiste also said Irish people wanted to see a coalition government and that undecided voters were likely to only make up their mind in the final days of the campaign - an issue she said would benefit Labour.

Ms Burton also said the imminent election is "about the next five years, not the last five years" - a point she referenced repeatedly on RTE's Today With Sean Rourke this morning.

While the move may be an attempt to build on the first week's strategy of talking up the recovery, opponents are likely to claim it is also an attempt to move away from the highly controversial austerity measures imposed in the last five years.

Meanwhile, Burton has laughed off claims her party is "hiding" Environment Minister Alan Kelly after a week littered with difficulties for the deputy Labour leader.

Asked if she is keeping the Tipperary TD away from high-profile launches and if he is becoming the Donald Trump of the race, the Tánaiste said: "The person who would seek to hide Alan - that would be a challenging job."

Ms Burton, who added her colleague would launch a housing plan in Limerick tomorrow and is currently "deep in debate with (Independent TD) Mattie McGrath" about constituency matters, earlier told RTE Radio "Alan is Alan, I'm Joan" when asked about their working relationship.

Labour's childcare plan includes previously announced moves to extend parental leave to three months which can be split between both parents.

It also involved moves to limit childcare costs to no more than €2 by 2021.