Fianna Fáil is set to push for Micheál Martin to be taoiseach for the first period of the new government, with the party also eyeing up a longer stint at the helm for its leader and having extra sway at cabinet level.
Substantive talks between Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil on forming a coalition are not due to begin until next week at the earliest, but informal discussions may take place today between the party leaders with Mr Martin and Simon Harris travelling to a British-Irish Council meeting in Edinburgh.
Senior sources said that with 48 seats – 10 more than Fine Gael – Fianna Fáil will want to see Mr Martin become taoiseach first and for longer than half of the expected lifetime of the administration, rather than a 50:50 split.
Cabinet positions could be split eight to seven between Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, although this could change if there are Independent TDs or another party in the picture to bulk out the coalition’s numbers.
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A Fine Gael source said members were “calm” about the prospect of Fianna Fáil seeking concessions, but pointed out that discussions between the two have not started. Talks about a rotating taoiseach agreement or potential cabinet positions will not happen until policy negotiations conclude, they said.
A Fianna Fáil source said there was a desire to “focus on the issues that people want us to tackle” before the balance of power is addressed, but they added that “10 seats is not a small gap”.
Meetings with Independent TDs are likely to continue over the coming days, but the prospect of either Labour or the Social Democrats joining a coalition is not being ruled out by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael members.
However, there are divisions in Labour and the Social Democrats about how best to proceed after increasing their Dáil numbers. The two parties will hold a first post-election meeting today, with Labour leader Ivana Bacik continuing to push for an alliance or platform of the left. Social Democrats deputy leader Cian O’Callaghan said while his party is open to talks about an alliance, its participation in government would not be dependent on what other parties decide to do.
Labour yesterday set out eight policy priorities for it ahead of government formation talks, but party TDs remain split on whether it should enter into a coalition with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael.
The priorities include the creation of a State construction company, delivering 50,000 newly built homes per year, a living wage that would be tied to 66 per cent of median hourly earnings, and the implementation of the Sláintecare healthcare reform plan.
Asked what course of action Labour would take if the Social Democrats decide to sit out government formation talks, Ms Bacik said the best way to seek to deliver change would be to “do that is from a position of collective strength”.
Asked for his personal preference on whether he would like to see his party enter government, Mr O’Callaghan said he had outlined during the campaign “what we wanted to get into government to do” but whether it would be possible to get the party’s “policies implemented in those key areas is another question”.
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