Fianna Fáil set out to bolster its election prospects yesterday as the Taoiseach sought to match or surpass the inducements offered by his opponents while, at the same time, presenting himself as a prudent, responsible and trustworthy leader. The latest developments involve a U-turn on stamp duty reform and a promise of retrospective mortgage interest relief. There is a whiff of political desperation, to put it bluntly.
After five days of desultory campaigning, in which Mr Ahern's personal finances attracted most media interest, Fianna Fáil's efforts to regain the political initiative achieved some limited success. The decision to remove stamp duty for first-time buyers, after 10 years in office, may represent something of a deathbed conversion. As with retrospective mortgage interest relief, however, it is personal benefits that attract voters, notwithstanding the likely impact on house inflation.
Retaining public confidence is Fianna Fáil's greatest challenge. Mr Ahern has offered a continuation of prosperous economic times if he is returned for a third term. But past administrative and policy failures, along with examples of extreme public waste, are - according to recent opinion polls - having a negative effect on public sentiment. And, for the first time, there is an alternative government on offer. In that context, it should come as no surprise that Fianna Fáil is struggling to hold its ground.
In an attempt to dispose of the ongoing controversy surrounding the funding, refurbishment and purchase of his Dublin home in the mid-1990s when he was minister for finance, the party leader offered some new details before a supportive Fianna Fáil audience. It was a tough, controlled performance. It remains to be seen whether such issues become the backround noise of the election campaign.
Meanwhile, the Labour Party published a Fair Society document, setting out its political objectives in addition to the programme agreed with Fine Gael. It offered to develop the economy and to reform the tax system, while favouring low and middle-income workers. Health services would be based on need and not on an ability to pay. The super rich would no longer be permitted to pay little or no tax. There would be a better tax deal for single income families. And the document promised reform of the way government works at both national and local level.
The Labour Party leader spoke of the need for increased education funding and for wide-ranging police reforms. He rounded on Fianna Fáil for its change of mind on stamp duty and its uncosted pension plans. And while Mr Rabbitte had sympathetic words for nurses in relations to shorter working hours, he said their pay demands should be processed through existing machinery. Such an approach will not gain him friends within the nursing profession. But it represents a good example of political courage and straight talking at a time when both commodities are in short supply.