Green wipeout on the cards as party support falls to 2pc
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Saturday February 13 2010
THE GREEN Party would face a national wipeout on a scale greater than last year's local election massacre if a general election was held tomorrow.
It is highly unlikely they would return a single TD to Leinster House as the meagre 2pc support for the party is evenly spread across the country and is not concentrated in one particular area.
It is a drop of 3pc from last February and a 0.3pc fall from last June's elections, when the Greens were reduced from 18 city and county council seats to just three.
The catastrophic poll means the party has sunk into the statistical margin of error of 3pc.
The latest opinion poll findings are bound to lead to further soul searching by party members about their relationship with Fianna Fail, coming only a day after Senator Deirdre de Burca's shock resignation.
And Green leader John Gormley, with an approval rating of 25pc, a drop of three points, is the second most unpopular leader, just 3pc ahead of Brian Cowen.
The number of people dissatisfied with the Environment Minister's performance has jumped four points to 56pc.
Since the last Irish Independent/Millward Brown Lansdowne opinion poll, Mr Gormley has 'sold' NAMA to his party, renegotiated a Programme for Government and fronted the response to the big freeze, when much of the country ground to a halt.
The Greens are now in a vulnerable position and none of their six TDs can feel secure.
Sinn Fein has seen a small jump in its support after the recent successful outcome of intensive negotiations on policing and justice in the North.
The party is up one point to 8pc and leader Gerry Adams' approval ratings have held steady at 37pc.
Independents, such as Finian McGrath, will be heartened as support for non-party TDs held at 10pc.
- FIACH KELLY
Irish Independent
