Covid-19 among issues delaying a government being formed

It now appears likely that a government may not be in place until July, as Covid-19 and some key issues look set to lengthen talks.
Covid-19 among issues delaying a government being formed

Leo Varadkar outside Government Buildings as he briefed media on topics including Brexit and the response to coronavirus following today’s Cabinet meeting. Photograph: Leon Farrell / Photocall Ireland
Leo Varadkar outside Government Buildings as he briefed media on topics including Brexit and the response to coronavirus following today’s Cabinet meeting. Photograph: Leon Farrell / Photocall Ireland

It now appears likely that a government may not be in place until July, as Covid-19 and some key issues look set to lengthen talks.

It had been hoped that a programme for government would be agreed by this Tuesday or Wednesday. However, sources say that there is "still a bit of work to be done" on key issues such as housing and agriculture. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has also said that the deadline for a deal is now the end of June.

Sources close to the talks say that it should not be taken that there is any mass disagreement on the issues just yet, rather that the delay "recognises these are complex issues".

One source pointed to the reduction of VAT for the hospitality industry discussed on Thursday as an example of an area of consensus: "It's not that there is huge differences."

With this weekend the 16th since February's general election, TDs are aware of the public desire to see a deal decided on, but they say that it is difficult. One said: "You're talking about decisions on spending billions of euro — that shouldn't happen quickly."

Another added that the ongoing restrictions around Covid-19, which limit meetings to two hours, have made things fairly tricky:

If you've to be leaving the room after two hours, that can often be when things are just getting going, so it can be frustrating, but we're getting there.

But however cordial and stop-start the talks have been, the key delay has been that each party has different ideas. No more than any negotiation, the art of politics has been the compromise. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar alluded to this in his post-Cabinet briefing this week. For three parties with different ideas and different mandates from their voters, we are now in what one TD called "crunch time".

That means that 10 days of negotiations will be carried out in a bid to find a common ground on policies in housing, transport, and agriculture. In housing, sources say that changing policy without Fine Gael having to take a significant step away from the last nine years will be key to finding agreement, while in agriculture the 'Civil War parties' must assure their voters that the 'Green agenda' will not destroy farming or rural communities.

In transport, the urban and rural divide is key. Green TDs, who are mostly urban, want 20% of spending ringfenced for walking and cycling. However, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are reluctant to divert spending away from already planned roads.

Those talks are not expected to be finished before June 8, after which they will need to be signed off by leadership and members of each party before a vote on Taoiseach, likely in the Convention Centre Dublin at the end of June or beginning of July.

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