The outlook for the Government parties is beginning to seem ominous after less than a year in office. This is despite the fact that they won a confidence vote in the Dáil this week by a whopping margin.

After an unremarkable budget and disastrous presidential election campaigns by both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael the two parties are already in a dangerous place. Facing a united Sinn Féin-led bloc in the Dáil they have some serious self-analysis to undertake even to get to the end of their current term.

Yet in the Dáil on Wednesday, when forced into a motion of confidence in Tánaiste Simon Harris, the Coalition won by 94 votes to 65, a large margin by normal standards. It was a sign that the united left won’t necessarily have it all its own way if the Government parties can get their act together.

The surprising thing........

© The Irish Times