The Progressive Democrats could survive its disastrous performance in the general election if it managed to form part of the new government, former president of the European Parliament Pat Cox has said.
Mr Cox, who is a former PD TD for Cork South Central, said the party had been badly damaged by the election result but could be salvaged if its two remaining deputies were able to maintain a position of power in the new Dáil.
"The result of the election was obviously a very bad one for the Progressive Democrats, but they're like the cat with nine lives, and the eventual outcome might be very good for them."
However, he added: "The risk of the election result being terminal would be higher if they were not in government."
The party was in a perilous position, he said. Since its formation, the Progressive Democrats had experienced peaks and troughs with every alternate election, but long-term the trend seemed to be towards decline.
The key issue for the party members who had not been elected but were still prominent politicians was to build the substance of the organisation.
"It needs more attention and tender loving care than it has been able to get over the past decade," he said.
The party needed to find "new political policy pastures" and develop a fresh political perspective, he said, rather than trying to be "Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael light".
If the Progressive Democrats did "knuckle down" and use the shock of the election results to galvanise the party, it had a "reasonable chance of survival".
Mr Cox, who now runs the consultancy firm, European Integration Solutions, said he would not be returning to the party. "I am not planning to pursue a political career," he said.
