The Dáil has settled into its routine under the new Government and two things are now apparent: one, predictions that Sinn Féin would tear into the Coalition with fresh vigour and aggression were bang on the money; and two, Micheál Martin has a new zip about him that suggests he subscribes to the view that the best form of defence is attack.
Martin has repeatedly batted back Sinn Féin attacks with the mien of a man taking pleasure in his work. This week he accused Mary Lou McDonald of lying (albeit in Irish) and having been charged by the Sinn Féin leader with caving into property industry lobbyists, he gleefully listed out all the property companies and lobbyists that Sinn Féin’s housing spokesman Eoin Ó Broin had met, according to entries in the Register of Lobbying.
“It is hypocrisy of the worst kind and it just sums up the shallowness of Sinn Féin’s approach. I am interested in real change and getting things done and you are not,” the Taoiseach told a noisy Dáil.
Martin appears to be getting rowdier as he gets older. Maybe it’s all the kale.
Micheál Martin is still the adult in the room, but now with added barbs and an air of impatience
So the North still says no. But for how much longer?
It normally takes a government a bit longer than this to look so out of touch
Angry Dáil scenes were partly the result of Sinn Féin’s determination to be a more aggressive Opposition
How much does this matter? Depends how you look at it. The Dáil is ignored by most people most of the time but it is important in our politics as the primary crucible of adversarial debate; it is also the place where politicians have to be careful about not telling lies, or at least not getting caught telling lies.
But the most important lesson from the early Dáil exchanges, and related political skirmishing, is that it demonstrates a renewed urgency which shows how Martin intends to run his Government – and also has implications for the policy followed by his administration in a small number of contentious and important areas.
These include housing, defence/security and the Occupied Territories Bill. In each case, there is difficult politics involved; in each case Martin will plough on regardless. It is not that the Taoiseach no longer cares about politics; of course he does. It’s that he is less worried about short-term political pain if it paves the way for long-term gain. Or, as one person who knows him well says, “he gives less of a shite” about the immediate political fallout.
On housing, the Taoiseach has been telling his backbenchers that they should prepare for “unpopular decisions”. This is code for not just changes to the rent pressure zones but also – as The Irish Times reported on Tuesday – the possible reintroduction of some form of tax reliefs for investment in housing development to attract more private capital into the sector. I’m told that a variety of other eye-catching innovations could be considered as part of a new housing plan. For many of them, the test will be not whether they are difficult or unpopular, but whether they will work to increase supply in the lifetime of this Government. The long lead-in time for housing policy measures to turn into actual housing is uppermost in everyone’s minds and is fuelling the Taoiseach’s impatience.
On defence and security, Martin – who is attending the Munich Security Conference this weekend with Nato leaders and many bushy-browed, uniformed types – has signalled in a series of recent speeches the intention for a step-change in attitudes at the top of Government. Last week, he told the Cork Chamber of Commerce that “defence, military and security capability is an issue we can no longer shy away from. We have to get serious about defending our critical interests”. There have been other similar interventions.
Martin’s speeches may also be read as a series of rebukes to the frequent peaceniking of President Michael D Higgins, something which might add a certain frisson when the new Taoiseach meets the President for their article 28 meetings.
On the Occupied Territories Bill, Martin has hit the brakes to consider the economic impact, while brushing aside calls to boycott the White House on St Patrick’s Day. “Our fundamental duty as a State is to protect our people in a turbulent world,” he told the Dáil last week. “That means protecting the enterprise economic model we have.”
This is the “adult in the room” persona that Martin employed to good effect during the election campaign – but with added barbs. You people are not serious, he is telling opponents. You need to grow up. This, it need hardly be added, drives them nuts.
Martin’s first few weeks back in the Taoiseach’s office have not been easy, but they have shown something different from his first term: there is a palpable impatience with politics as usual and a willingness to accept political heat for pushing ahead with controversial policies.
[ It normally takes a government a bit longer than this to look so out of touchOpens in new window ]
Above all, perhaps, he is conscious that time is short: November 16th, 2027 – when Martin will vacate the Taoiseach’s office to be replaced by the leader of Fine Gael – might seem like a long way away. But it’s not, really. Not when it takes so much time to get things done.
Martin is 65 this summer, and will be 67 when he exits the Taoiseach’s office for what is presumably the last time. It would be hard to see him leading Fianna Fáil into the next election at the age of 69, after 40 years in Leinster House, and – at that stage – nearly 17 years as party leader. He is already the second longest serving leader of Fianna Fáil, behind Éamon de Valera.
He is, perhaps as a result of all that healthy eating, in demonstrably good shape for a man of his age, but would he really want to, or think he can, go on and on into his 70s? I doubt it.
If so, this is probably the last extended act in a long political career. But time is short. And there is so much to do.
