Renua Ireland leader Lucinda Creighton has given an undertaking that her new party will be the most open and transparent in the history of the State, saying "we intend to govern in sunshine".
The party was launched yesterday in Dublin at an event hosted by Ms Creighton and by another of the party's founders, Eddie Hobbs.
It outlined 16 policies, including ones on reducing some business taxes, reform of the public sector, political reform, housing, and childcare.
Ms Creighton said the party wanted a new concept of open government, where the minutes of all Cabinet meetings would be published within 48 hours and the advice given by the Attorney General to Cabinet would also be made publicly available.
She said the party wished to impose a time limit on how long a politician could serve as a minister in government to prevent stagnation of ideas and groupthink.
However, the party said its policies on the major issues of the wider economy, health and education would not be published until later this year. Ms Creighton said the party was not going to publish policies "on the back of an envelope" as she contended Fine Gael did with universal health insurance.
She said when the full policies were published, they would be the most detailed and comprehensive since Declan Costello's Just Society for Fine Gael over 40 years ago.
‘New thinking’
“We intend to govern in the sunshine. We should trust Irish citizens with the truth,” she said.
“We think that enticing new blood, new thinking and new decision-making at the highest possible level of the State is absolutely essential.”
Other members of the new party are deputy leader Billy Timmins TD, Terence Flanagan TD, her husband Senator Paul Bradford and head of the Jack and Jill charity Jonathan Irwin.
The party will be organised into seven regional branches. It has had advanced discussions, it said, with 180 people so far identified as potential candidates for the party.
It intends to contest all 40 constituencies in the general election. Mr Hobbs said Ireland had put up with cronyism and backroom deals, insiders and secrecy for too long.
Pressed on whether he himself would run, Mr Hobbs said the answer would be no if an election were held tomorrow. “In due course if it’s possible to run I will run; I have said it over and over again,” he said.
The party has said it has an ambitious reform agenda and is in favour of free and whipless votes on matters of conscience.
Asked if she would support a government headed by her former party leader in Fine Gael, Taoiseach Enda Kenny, Ms Creighton said she did not engage in personality politics but had no interest in propping up any government that had been rejected by the people. At the same time she said the party was prepared to enter government.
Mr Flanagan later had what was described as a brain freeze on air when interviewed on RTÉ's Drivetime by Mary Wilson about the party's launch. During the three-minute interview, he was unable to complete answers and ended some answers mid-sentence. When asked what the party offered PAYE workers he replied: "Emm for the PAYE workers?" before seizing up. As sounds of rustling papers could be heard, Ms Wilson finished the interview: "Terence I think we'll leave it there for today."
