IT WAS bruising and damaging. The bitterness created will divide Fine Gael. Five hours of speeches at Leinster House and a majority of the Fine Gael parliamentary party finally decided to stick with the leadership of Enda Kenny. The man who had been chairman, rather than chief; who had brought the party from a humiliating Dáil defeat in 2002 to the heights of local authority and European election victories in 2009, was rewarded with permission to lead on.
But does the decision improve the prospects for the party that wishes to lead the next government? A majority of the Fine Gael front bench publicly declared that Mr Kenny had neither the charisma nor the leadership qualities required to become the next taoiseach. The party’s deputy leader Richard Bruton led the revolt and announced that he would not serve if the attempted coup failed. Look at the profile of those surrounding Mr Kenny on the plinth after his victory. The younger urban members were notable by their absence. For Fine Gael and its political ambitions, the episode has been an unmitigated disaster.
The relief felt by Fianna Fáil TDs during these past days, as they watched Fine Gael undergo leadership convulsions, may be short-lived. The electorate’s dissatisfaction with Mr Kenny – which precipitated the challenge – was but a pale imitation of the negativity with which voters view Brian Cowen. The reason the Taoiseach escaped a similar review of his leadership within Fianna Fáil may be because of the ill-fated Fine Gael motion of no confidence in the Dáil. But pressure on his leadership is likely to intensify as a general election approaches.
In all of this, the Labour Party and Eamon Gilmore have probably gained most. The Irish Timesopinion poll showing the Labour Party leap-frogging both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael in its core support precipitated the Bruton challenge. Should the party retain that premier position – and Fine Gael's decision will help – Mr Gilmore could develop realistic ambitions to become taoiseach and the number of ministerial seats would be affected accordingly.
Before the vote, there was broad agreement within Fine Gael that the party’s image was suffering from Mr Kenny’s leadership. Afterwards, it was as if a polite tea party had occurred. Mr Kenny spoke of a “brilliant meeting” and of moving on as a completely united party. Wisely, appointments to a new front bench will be delayed as he considers his options arising from what had been said. The extent of the purge is likely to reflect the safety of the leader.
Mr Kenny’s strong response to Mr Bruton’s challenge came as a shock to his political opponents and a surprise to the general public. The ruthless sacking of his finance spokesman and the tactical flair exhibited in confounding his critics were aspects of his character that were unknown. In party political terms, Mr Kenny won handsomely. He outmanoeuvred his opponents. But, has he improved Fine Gael’s chance of providing the next taoiseach?