Simon Harris is not Fine Gael’s biggest problem, but neither is he necessarily the solution. Last week’s Irish Times/Ipsos B & A opinion poll put Fine Gael at a historic low of 16 per cent, while a recent Red C poll had it at 17 per cent, but political unpopularity may not count as much as it used to. Fine Gael staged three balefully bad general election campaigns in a row but in 2027 it will become the party with the longest continuity in government in the history of the State.

Fine Gael outlasting the longevity of De Valera is comeuppance for Fianna Fáil – and is only spoiled for Fine Gael by the fact that it is the junior partner. It’s awkward, too, that Micheál Martin is more credible with many Fine Gael voters. The handful in either party who might become ministers have a stake in the bigger share of the spoils that go with having the largest number of seats. But the interchangeable muddle between both means that if they can collectively hold about 40 per cent of the vote, they have a better........

© The Irish Times