EX FG voters, why have you stopped supporting them?

That's why I'm still voting for FG.

Because any government that doesn't include FG will deliver the above and more in spades.

Do you really think FF or SF would not increase taxes, would not prioritize welfare recipients over workers, limit immigration etc etc?

Depends on what you think was squandered.

The reason we could get through COVID paying the PUP and TWSS was because of prudent running of the economy since 2011 by FG.

We have just had a budget with tax cuts and increases in welfare spending because of prudent running of the economy by FG.

These are things that don't make the headlines as much as homelessness, HSE etc, but I shudder to think what the country would have to do if we had another emergency a few years into a SF government.

You realise by voting for them you’re encouraging their behaviour.

FG need a good kick up the hole to realise where their vote lies at the minute they seem to think it lies with welfare recipients and illegal immigrants.

33% CGT and 40% on ETFs and USC up to 7% and VAT@23% and carbon taxes and fuel tax@49% and vacant home tax and property tax and VRT and stamp duty and standing charges and high income taxes and excise taxes not good enough for ya?

Ireland doesn't need MORE taxes. Go on outta that.

It's obvious Ireland needs at least a small but true right of centre party to pull coalitions out of the tax them to hell and giveaway freebies mindset of these meifeiner politicians.

There is no balance at all.

FF and FG have no pressure on them to reduce the squeeze on working people.

SF are going to be even worse, they think somebody who works hard everyday and paid 80k euro is rich and deserves to get EVEN MORE of their hard earned cash taken away to those who don't bother their arse going out working or stretching themselves.

There is no emigrant voting permitted unfortunately.

yes, more right leaning parties have a tendency towards strong state interventions and supports, particularly if its for the gains of the few, i.e. the so called 'trickle down' effect etc!

Why I don't vote for FG anymore, mainly Varadkar I just absolutely detest the man.

I actually laugh when people call them right wing, the are anything but and really are only lap dogs for EPP party in the European union. First of all conservatives like what FG were supposed to be are supposed to 'conserve' and be prudent, they are anything but by blowing away our golden goose of corpo tax since 2016. Had we conserved it and spent it wisely on housing then health wouldn't be in the mess its in today with every doctor and nurse emigrating once finished med in college. Likewise education would be half as bad as it is today if they didn't screw up the housing polices so bad here.

Realistically QE and low interest rates pushed by the major western central banks has caused the housing problem throughout the globe, as pension funds and hedge funds couldn't make returns on safe government bonds so they had to go else where and when interest rates were so low and QE was endless then the risk factor was completely taken out. FG policy should have been to up the tax on intuitional landlords and REITs they had to do it. They also could have offered tax breaks for companies who wanted to participate in social housing projects, and tax breaks for companies that were offering affordable housing, they didn't the caved into the big lobbyist sure wasn't Enda Kenny employed by one vulture fund and now here we are - in an absolute disaster.

We do not have postal voting for emigrants.

If you qualify for a postal vote from abroad, you have not emigrated

When a public transport system decades behind and a green agenda both being held up as problems I get confused. The Greens are pushing very strongly to improve the public transport system.

I would say the words for that are "deceitful populism"

FG could have enshrined themselves as a pro-business, small government, low tax, financially prudent, socially conservative party. Things we once regarded as the tenets of conservatism.

Instead they spent the last 10 years pandering to SocDem voters, who will never give them even a whiff of a transfer. As missed opportunities go, its up there with Ronnie Rosenthal v Aston Villa.