Sir, – In a erudite exposition on leadership lessons to be learned from the FitzGerald and Haughey era, Pat Leahy makes one omission (“Three lessons in leadership from the careers of the great rivals, FitzGerald and Haughey”, Opinion & Analysis, August 24th). Crediting both Garret FitzGerald and Charles Haughey with knowing how to fix a dysfunctional economy, he declares that neither had the political will nor capacity to take the tough measures that would achieve that aim – until, Pat Leahy asserts, Haughey’s 1987 minority government brought the public finances under control.
Following the 1987 general election, Alan Dukes became Fine Gael leader, when Garret FitzGerald stood down, having narrowly lost power to Fianna Fáil.
In a major departure from conventional politics, Mr Dukes through the Tallaght Strategy supported stringent tax and spending cuts introduced by Mr Haughey’s minority government, with Mr Dukes promising that Fine Gael in opposition would not sink the new government on macroeconomic issues. Thus the foundations for economic recovery and growth throughout the 1990s were laid with political cover being provided to Mr Haughey’s minority government, through Mr Dukes’s responsible and courageous leadership, provided sensible policies were pursued by the Haughey administration. Hitherto there was nothing in Mr Haughey’s political CV that governments he led had the stomach for the measures he undertook in 1987. He had never previously shown much appetite for hair-shirt policies.
Despite the personal and party political risks taken by Alan Dukes in the national interest by implementing the Tallaght Strategy, little benefit accrued either to him or the Fine Gael party he led. He has never been sufficiently credited by the media for guaranteeing our economic recovery and undoubtedly it foreshortened his tenure as Fine Gael leader.
Any fair analysis of politics during the 1980s is incomplete without recognising his important, selfless and principled leadership at a crucial point in our economic history. – Yours, etc,
PJ McDERMOTT,
Westport,
Co Mayo.
Sir, – Congratulations to Hugh Linehan and Pat Leahy on their superb summer podcast series on Haughey and Fitzgerald.
The three episodes were entertaining (I’ll say nothing of the impersonations) and a great insight into recent political history. Well done. – Yours, etc,
CRAIG DOUGLAS,
Belfast.