Labour must be mad....

Posted Tuesday, March 8, 2011

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Coalition

Now that the election is over the truth can be admitted - and that is that the policies put in place by Fianna Fail are going to be broadly continued by the Fine Gael / Labour Coalition.

Indeed they have said that the financial and budget policy of Fianna Fail is going to be continued for at least two years.

If the Coalition succeeds then Fine Gael will get the main praise and will be voted in in greater numbers last time.

If it fails and the Government is not a success then they'll both get the blame.

Greater Share

However, we can see that the junior party gets probably a greater share of it.

Just ask The Greens.

Look also at the UK.

Poll

An opinion poll out today puts Labour on 42%, the Conservatives on 35% and the Lib Dems on a measly 11%.

The Conservative vote is about the same as they had at the election.

However, massive amounts of Lib Dems have defected to Labour as they are seen as having abandoned positions that they fought the election on.

Abandoned Policies

It was always the case that the party with fewer seats in the Coalition would have to abandon more of their polices that the election was fought on.

However, voters don't see it like that.

To them the Lib Dems are abandoning most of their principles and the promises they made to the electorate - just to get power.

Same Here

The same will happen here.

As Labour votes in the Dail for policies that they opposed previously and they vote for cuts on students, pensioners, single mothers, child allowance, police, teachers, nurses, doctors etc. etc. etc. people are going to be very angry with them.

So, what else could they have done?

Labour had always been the third party.

Main Opposition

They could have consolidated and become the main Opposition Party ready to thrash a minority Government held together by Independents over cuts to students, pensioners, single mothers, child allowance, police, teachers, nurses, doctors etc. etc. etc.

The chances are that this Government would have collapsed under the weight of the debt mountain visited on this country by the banks.

Craving Power

The trouble with Labour, as with all parties in that position, is that they wanted power.

Their top politicians are not of an age when they can wait around for a few years for it.

They could have been the main Opposition for the first time ready to take full power when it is shown that Fine Gael no more have answers for our problems than Fianna Fail.

Sidelines

It would have been a great time to stand on the sidelines hurling abuse at a minority Government which was cutting everything at the behest of the EU and IMF so that foreign banks can get paid back for their own bad investments.

It would have been like taking candy from kids.

And then they could have reaped the rewards when the Independents abandoned Fine Gael after 18 months to 2 years.

Power Now

However, they decided that it was power now that they wanted (even if it is a minority of it).

As payback for that they will have to vote for cuts and other measures that they oppose and their voters abhor.

They will punish them for that.

They have made a huge tactical and strategic mistake.

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