A vote for Sinn Fein in the next general election may mean a vote for Fianna Fail, the Fine Gael leader, Mr John Bruton, said in Tralee yesterday.
Sinn Fein offered no real alternative to Fianna Fail and were "a potential prop" for that party, he said. "Sinn Fein supported Fianna Fail in the last general election. They supported Fianna Fail in the Presidential election. Will they be putting Fianna Fail back in power after the next election?"
"The only way of making an effective protest against Fianna Fail is by putting together a government that will replace Fianna Fail, not just protest against them," he said.
Fine Gael offers the only real chance of replacing the present government, he said. The Fine Gael leader also hit out at funding of Sinn Fein from abroad. After Fianna Fail, Sinn Fein was the highest recipient of private donations, it emerged recently.
Sinn Fein did not support the Labour Party Bill to ban corporate donations to political parties, said Mr Bruton, because that Bill contained a ban on foreign donations. A lot of Sinn Fein's money came from America. This should be stopped and constituted "interference" in the internal politics of this country, he said.
"Sinn Fein are not an anti-sleaze party but a pro-Fianna Fail party," he said. Mr Bruton alluded to situations in the US and the UK where campaign contributions by foreign business men was frowned upon. "It should be stopped. We should pay for our own politics in this country," he said.
"The people will need clarity. The question that has to be asked of every independent and every party is `will they support a Fianna Fail government'?" Mr Bruton did not rule out a Fine Gael pact with Labour to form the next government. "They have a good record of serving the people," he said of Labour.
Asked about Fine Gael's consistently poor showing in the opinion polls, Mr Bruton said: "My determination is to convey the message Fine Gael is the best way of replacing Fianna Fail."