Fine Gael Demographic

Back in 2020 time I seriously thought there would be some sort of FF+SF tie-up, and that FF would give MM the chop in order to enable it.

Zero chance of FF & FG merging in the near future. Both parties are full of members who see themselves as radically different from each other and those are the people that would be responsible for any merger. Maybe in 30 years or so. You'll see a Labour & Soc Dems merger before you'll see a FF/FG merger and Labour and the Soc Dems won't be merging anytime soon.

The whole "If only Labour had stayed out" is results-orientated thinking of the highest order. It's easy to look back in hindsight after their near annihilation in 2016 but decisions don't work like that and any analysis of their decision on that basis is flawed. You have to go back to the aftermath of the 2011 general election when the decision to enter government was made. There literally was no alternative. FF were basically political lepers and that's before you even consider the political history between themselves and FG. There was literally zero chance of a coalition happening then. On the other hand, Labour and FG had formed a reasonably successful coalition (along with the Democratic Left) in the mid '90s. Labour had campaigned on the basis that they would go into government and had just had their most successful ever election.

Now you can absolutely make the argument that Labour made a load of mistakes once in power (and they did) but the argument that they made a blunder in going into coalition in the first place is not a credible one.

I think MM had dug himself into a corner saying he would not go in with SF, for which he was cheerleaded by a certain Eoghan Harris/Barbara J Pym - say what ever happened to him/her…?

You want repossessions to be easier, yet you claim you are going to vote for SF who have repeatedly asked that all repossessions be stopped. Does not add up.

Labour or the Social Democrats would be more appropriate. You can be guaranteed that SF will do nothing for you.

In my mind, the biggest lesson from the last election is that a vote for Sinn Fein is a wasted vote if you actually want to change things. Sure, if you want to let off steam and roar and shout with the best of them, a vote for Sinn Fein will give you what you want.

However, after the election, nobody wanted to touch Sinn Fein with a bargepole other than PBP, and even they ended up split over it. Labour, SDs, Greens, Fine Gael, Fianna Fail, Independents etc. all ran away from discussion with Sinn Fein, probably because of the old adage of lying down with dogs.

My advice therefore is to vote for whichever of those other parties is closest to your views so that they end up with the strongest possible hand in government. Hence I expect to be voting Green again.

That's not a very realistic stance to take. The timelines involved are too long. Land, housing, building are all long term projects.

Remember if SF get in - especially as a lead partner - they will take quite a while to adjust to the realities of power and compromise.

Their policies re current expenditure are unconvincing, to me.

Why not consider moving out of the city. Or save more intensively.

The realpolitik of the situation is if the next government is not formed by another deal of some sort between FF and FG it will almost certainly be led by SF, with Eoin O'Broin almost certainly given the housing ministry. So in practice a vote for anyone other than FF/FG (and in reality anyone other than FG) is a vote to give SF control of housing policy. So if you think SF housing policy is even slightly better than the current government's I'd say they're your only option.

You do know that parties change stances between elections right? Specifically, just because FF ruled out SF in the last election doesn't mean that the will for the next election. In fact I'd be surprised if they did (especially with MM gone as leader).

My money on the government after the next election would be on SF-FF. I'm sure SF would prefer to go in with a bunch of left-wing parties but I cannot see the numbers being there for that especially when a lot of SF's gains will be made at the expense of those very parties.

Why do you think it would the end of FF? After all they are "The Republican Party" and quite a lot of their TDs were open to the idea after the last election. FF are possibly the most ideologically fluid party in the Dail. They don't really stand for anything so it's not like there would be too many policy red-lines for them.

If you expect the political world to deliver a fix to your specific problem you could be waiting a very, very long time. Especially if you are expecting it from a new party in power. Next election 2025, 4 months to form a Govt, compromises on election 'commitments', new Minister (if FF/SF FF will be delighted to give E O Broin the job), then Govt tenders 1/2 years, building 1/2 years and then the competition for the affordable houses.

Far, far better to look to your own resources and resourcefulness to get what you want. I saw a fine (enough) semi in Wilton, Cork priced at €275,000. A slightly better house in Clontarf cost €575k.