Leo Varadkar rules out coalition with FF after '2018 election'
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has made it known to his senior ministers that he does not favour a grand coalition with Fianna Fáil after the next election, which he believes will be in 2018, .
Fine Gael ministers are to meet tomorrow to begin discussion on what several have accepted will be their final budget before going to the polls next year.
As a result, the party is adamant that it outlines three years of expected revenue and spending as a means of disguising how little money is available this year, but also to “box the opposition” into its agenda.
However, with the certainty that an election will happen next year, attention is again focusing on who can make up a government.
Several sources within Cabinet have told the Irish Examiner that despite mounting calls for the two old enemies to enter a full coalition, Mr Varadkar has said such a scenario is “not preferable” and should be avoided.
The Taoiseach is “totally focused” on maximising the Fine Gael vote as he and other senior party figures fear that should they lose to Fianna Fáil, the party could be out of government for up to a generation, several sources have said.
“While others in the party like Brian Hayes have publicly been pushing the grand coalition option, Leo is definitely not a supporter of this,” one senior minister said. “He has made it known such a deal would be a nightmare.
“Leo wants to maximise the Fine Gael vote and be ahead of Micheál Martin so he will by rights have the run of the table,” the minister added.
The Irish Examiner understands that Fine Gael is targeting at least 30% of the vote, which it hopes will deliver a return of 60 seats in the next Dáil.
Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney yesterday gave voice to the likelihood of a general election in 2018, saying his party’s preparations will begin this autumn.
“But if you don’t know when an election is going to be, you want to be prepared, for all eventualities. Fine Gael will be ready. So we will focus on election planning this autumn,” he said.
“We don’t want an election this autumn,” he added.
Mr Coveney said that he hoped Fianna Fáil does not play political games in trying to dictate the timing of the election that suits it, at the expense of the public good.
“I hope Fianna Fáil will be responsible not to play politics with the timing of the election that does damage.
“There will be an election, of course there will be. If you are looking for predictions, the commitment was for three budgets; we will certainly get two and let’s see where it takes us after that,” he told Newstalk.
Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin, writing this weekend, sought to put the notion of a coalition with Sinn Féin to bed.
“Fianna Fáil’s established policy on Sinn Féin is that it is unfit for Government in Dublin and we will oppose any and all efforts by them to get into Government,” he wrote in the Sunday Independent.
