The Party’s over

Looking across the Irish Sea to the old country I see that there are strange times afoot. The Progressive Democrats (The PDs) look like they are now in their final death throws and will be wound up next month.

It has been a curious thing to watch a political party die, perhaps all the more remarkable as they currently have TDs (Members of the Irish Parliament the Dáil Éireann) and Senators, although small in number, a number of councillors around the country and over 4000 members.

The PDs have always been an odd creature. Setup in 1985 as a ‘liberal’ alternative to the two large parties of Irish politics (Fianna Fáil – FF, and Fine Gael - FG), they were created by a number of disaffected FF members (and a few FGs), including former ministers, who were unhappy at the conservative nature of many of FF’s positions. The issue that really sparked off the birth of the PDs, perhaps ironically, was FF’s attitudes against the introduction of contraception.

While that social liberal heritage is there it has always been the free market liberal policies of the PDs which have set them apart – as neo-cons.

At their early high point they held 14 seats in the Dáil, but it is their recent showing that has doomed the party. Before the last Irish election they held 8 seats and on election night in 2007 they lost 6 of them. Those two TDs left standing were Mary Harney and Noel Grealish. Despite their small number they went back into government with FF, but in the last couple of weeks t has been clear that Grealish has been looking to defect to FF.

Grealish is something of a no-mark but it seems that the speculation on his move have been the straw that has broken the camel’s back and has committed the PDs to the political dustbin. It is now expected that a large number of PD members will switch their allegiance to FF – although it has been stressed this will be a decision for each individual member to make. There is to be a special conference next month on the winding up of the party.

But what of Mary Harney? Harney was a FF senator in her youth, being the youngest senator ever at 24 years old. She was later elected to the Dáil in 1981. She has played a fairly prominent part in Irish political life ever since and was one of the founders of the PDs, serving as its leader from 1993 to 2006 and step into the position briefly after the last election when the PDs then leader, Michael McDowell, lost his seat. In coalition governments she was also Tánaiste (Deputy PM) to Bertie Ahern and has been a long serving minister of health.

Harney has made it clear that she doesn`t intent to rejoin FF when the PDs are wound up and will instead sit as an independent – there is though suggestions that she may be made Ireland’s EU Commissioner next year, although this is not a position she has been seen to lobby for.

The death of the PDs is a fairly clear reminder that all of politics is fluid and that sometimes political parties do die – even though they have elected members etc.