Fine Gael: a hotbed of malice and intrigue
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Sunday June 13 2010
A GROUP of Fine Gael grandees are bracing themselves for the painful task of deposing Enda Kenny -- but they are not quite sure how to finish the job.
There is a growing belief that Mr Kenny's grip on power has been slipping for up to a month, and last week's Irish Times opinion poll results have simply brought the matter to a head.
As the pressure of the surge in support for the Labour Party plunged Fine Gael back to its former state of being "a family at war'', the party has now become a hotbed of malice and intrigue.
In a striking example of the level of paranoia, one supporter of Mr Kenny told the Sunday Independent that "we see the little cartels, meeting together in the Burlington hotel where they think they won't be noticed".'
Another senior figure said "the party is very shaky. He won't last much longer than next week''.
Another TD said: "The frontbench are nerving themselves up for a pre-emptive strike against Kenny within the next fortnight."
The party hierarchy may have been making soothing noises about last week's poll, but their views are not shared by senior Fine Gael TDs.
One high-profile figure spoke to the Sunday Independent, saying: "Fianna Fail is nothing now. The next election will be fought out between the opposition.
"Whoever wins that battle will define the shape of the next government -- and right now, in all the places where the swing is the most severe, Labour are beating us right out the gate.''
Such is the level of bitterness that senior frontbench figures are even openly claiming that Enda Kenny is trying to regularly "undermine Richard Bruton to save his own skin'' and that this is "damaging the party''.
"Enda has this terrible need to clip Richard's wings and it is doing us terrible damage," said one source.
"Enda is talking about things he doesn't know about and Richard is left to pick up the pieces.''
But Mr Kenny's people now believe Mr Bruton has been "sending out feelers to see if he does have the support to take out Enda".
The Sunday Independent asked Deputy Bruton if he was prepared to issue a statement of support for Kenny to lead Fine Gael into the next election. At the time of printing, the paper had not yet received a response.
Significantly, Richard Bruton is not the only senior frontbencher who is in conflict with an increasingly isolated Fine Gael leader.
It is claimed that Mr Kenny also gave Phil Hogan a "major dressing down'' over Mr Hogan's controversial decision to go on an Oireachtas golfing junket in Turkey.
Though he has had an erratic relationship with Mr Kenny, the high-profile Fine Gael Environment spokesman has up to now been seen as a key Kenny ally and the leader's chief "enforcer".
But sources within Fine Gael told the Sunday Independent that Mr Kenny had said Hogan's attendance at the event had been "a serious error of judgement''.
Phil Hogan did not attend the frontbench meeting where the alleged criticism was made.
One Fine Gael source said: "He's done nothing wrong, he didn't miss a day in the Dail, the Turks paid for the gig and Enda is still wagging the big old finger at him."
- JOHN DRENNAN
Originally published in
