World of Politics with Harry McGee

It’s a strange situation that Fine Gael finds itself in, with almost half of its TDs not standing in the election. Superficially, it reminds you of Fianna Fáil in 2011 when most of its senior Ministers announced they were standing down. That was because the party was facing Armageddon, which it did. It won 78 seats in 2007 and won only 20 in 2011, all of them men.

But it’s different for Fine Gael this time.

Sure, name recognition is huge in Irish politics and replacing a TD who is a household name (Leo Varadkar, Simon Coveney) with a person who is not that well known and may never have stood in a general election before is a risk.

There is no doubt that Fine Gael will experience the downside of this in a number of constituencies, where the personal vote of a well-known TD just doesn’t pass on to his or her successor.

The difference between Fine Gael now and Fianna Fáil in 2011 is twofold.

The economy is good, the country is in relatively good shape, and while there are serious shortcomings, it’s nothing like the disaster of 2011.

The second factor is Simon Harris. He has been Taoiseach for less than four months, but he has certainly re-energised Fine Gael. It’s noteworthy that the vast majority of his special advisers are communications people.

He has muted a PR blitzkrieg since assuming the top job – as well as being Taoiseach, he seems to have become the senior minister in a handful of portfolios (including Fianna Fáil ones) and knocking out statements at a higher rate than novenas at Knock Shrine.

It’s energy, but it’s not all energy. He has repositioned the party by focusing on a very small number of key issues which will be important to the electorate.

For example, he has moved to a harder line on immigration. He has emphasised law and order. He has taken cognisance of the messages that emerged after the family referendum (we are not likely to see the hate speech legislation happen before this Coalition breathes its last).

Pictured: Éamon Ó Cuív…lifelong advocate for rural communities and Ireland’s rich history and heritage.