THE joy in Labour was unconfined this week with the belief that their downward slide was halted now that Fergus Finlay was back working full-time for the party. As the backbenchers around Leinster House perked up considerably, the mandarins in Iveagh House were saying farewell with a small drinks party followed, for some, by dinner in Ballsbridge.
Although he was already out on the ground, with Labour deputies investigating how the disastrous vote of Dublin West could have occurred, Finlay attended his last meeting of the Anglo-Irish Liaison Committee yesterday and there is agreement that if an occasion arises where he can play a role, official or unofficial, in the process, there will be no objection, although he is now on the Labour Party payroll.
Other parties are worried. Although Dick Spring says he wants an election in November 1997, everyone expects it to be sooner.
The FF factor, as Labour calls Finlay, is part of the build-up. So is the Fianna Fail decision that front-bench members will tour the country during the late summer and autumn while Ministers are tied up with EU presidency affairs. Front-bench meetings are to be held in one venue in each province where spokespeople will also meet local interest groups.