Ten days on from the appointment of the new Government, politics appears to be settling down, as the final pieces of the Oireachtas jigsaw are put into place. The decision of Ceann Comhairle Verona Murphy to deny Opposition speaking rights to a technical group that included TDs who had been party to negotiations on the Government’s formation brought to a close the furious protests which had delayed the nomination of Micheál Martin as Taoiseach a week previously.
The time has now come for this Government and its Ministers to set out their stalls on how they plan to tackle the considerable challenges that lie ahead. Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan has been early out of the traps, signalling in an interview today that his priorities include a focus on law and order in Dublin and a more efficient approach to the processing of claims for international protection.
Tánaiste and and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Harris, a foreign policy novice, has convened a team of experts to assist and advise on reaching out to the new US administration. That looks set to be an arduous and unpredictable job, as Ireland attempts to steer a route through the perilous waters of EU-US confrontation over trade and defence, along with the even more daunting question of Gaza, following Donald Trump’s outrageous proposals on the subject, and his subsequent assault on the integrity of the International Court of Justice.
The Government can be satisfied, for the moment at least, that tax revenues remain as buoyant as they were in 2024. But the increased uncertainty which Trump has already injected into the world economy and the explicit threats from the White House directed at sectors such as pharmaceuticals that are the basis of the Irish economic model give cause for alarm and also for caution.
Despite this, the Government inherits some challenges from its not-so-different predecessor that cannot be ignored. Chief among them is the glaring shortfall in housing output last year compared to the projections put forward by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael during the election campaign. The issue provided a profitable line of attack this week for the Opposition, which accused the two parties of political malpractice. Whether that charge inflicts lasting damage remains to be seen; what is indisputable is that the last government’s strategy was not working and that its successor will fall woefully short of its stated targets unless there is substantial change. It would be preferable for new Minister for Housing James Browne to acknowledge that fact as soon as possible.
While the Government must take account of the real threats to the Irish economy from external forces, it must also provide for the pressing needs of a growing population. It is a narrow path that will require some skill to navigate.
