FG concern at repercussions of Bruton election loss

Senior members of Fine Gael are concerned that other TDs could be deposed at selection conventions following Minister for Jobs and Enterprise Richard Bruton’s recent failure to get elected to a party ticket.

The Fine Gael national executive heard the concerns at a special meeting to add Mr Bruton to the Dublin Bay North ticket last week.

A number of party sources speculated that convention upsets are possible in constituencies such as Clare and Galway West, where there are four Oireachtas members each.

The national executive was told Mr Bruton’s case could encourage others to try and displace sitting TDs, in the belief the incumbents will later be added, and has sent out the “wrong message” to rank- and-file party members.

Mr Bruton had to be added to the Dublin Bay North ticket at an emergency incorporeal meeting of the national executive last week, the morning after he lost the constituency selection convention. Taoiseach Enda Kenny made a recommendation to add Mr Bruton after he lost out to Naoise Ó Muirí, a Dublin city councillor, and Stephanie Regan, who failed to get elected to the city council last year.

This followed a revolt among some local members against a gender quotas directive, handed down from headquarters, that of two candidates, at least one must be a woman. The national executive is understood to have ratified Mr Bruton's addition via email and phone call, and some of the email exchanges have been seen by The Irish Times.

While one member of the national executive said “not adding Minister Bruton straight away would also cause problems”, the same member said: “This could send out the wrong message ahead of other conventions.”

No consequences

Another, who also agreed with adding Mr Bruton, wrote in an email:

“I would worry tho (sic) that it will give everyone in the country a bit of confidence that if they can get through a convention there will be no consequences, if we wait for a couple of months it might create enough uncertainty to cause others to pull back and get us through the rest of the conventions more easily.”

One of the national executive members who was at the Dublin Bay North convention in Clontarf Castle said in his email that he agreed with the concerns raised by his colleagues, saying they reflected his “own thoughts”.

“I felt the vibes were not good, so I was not particularly surprised.”

Off the ticket

A source added: “It is one thing to add Richard Bruton, who is a Minister. It is another to add a normal TD. There will be cases of Oireachtas members who will not make it on to Dáil tickets, and this will encourage others to have go.”

The outcome in Dublin Bay North will also have a knock- on effect on Fine Gael gender quotas, with speculation that a female candidate could be added in areas such as Dublin Fingal, where Minister for Children James Reilly is a sitting TD, to bring up the proportion of female candidates.