Fine Gael is "cynically" using Labour to increase its own support by offering a pre-election pact, a leading trade unionist has warned in advance of this weekend's key Labour Party conference.
In a pre-conference intervention, Michael O'Reilly, regional secretary of the Amalgamated Transport and General Workers' Union, criticised Labour leader Pat Rabbitte's plans for a pre-election vote-transfer pact with Fine Gael.
"Since the last general election Fine Gael has failed to increase its support. In 2002 it suffered its worst electoral defeat in over 50 years. It has failed to improve on that performance and is now languishing in the polls. Even in the last local election its popular support actually fell. Fine Gael is a party heading for irrelevancy," said Mr O'Reilly, who has consistently opposed a Fine Gael-Labour coalition.
The motion favouring a vote-transfer pact with Fine Gael will be moved by Mr Rabbitte on Saturday morning in Tralee, Co Kerry, during a two-hour debate that will be broadcast live by RTÉ.
Despite doubts among a significant minority about Mr Rabbitte's view, it is believed he will easily win the debate, if only because a rebuff would provoke a major leadership crisis.
The motion, which was accepted last month by Labour's national executive, authorises Mr Rabbitte "to take such steps as are necessary" to achieve the objective of removing the current Government.
If passed, it would also grant him approval to negotiate a vote-transfer deal "with the genuinely democratic parties of opposition to agree a broad common policy agenda consistent with a fair society".
This common agenda would provide a framework for a programme for government, though any final decision on a coalition deal would remain for a special post-election Labour conference.
Last night the former leader of the Labour Party, Ruairí Quinn, said he would "listen with interest" to the contributions from both sides of the argument during the Tralee debate.
"The country needs a change of government. There are persuasive arguments for and against [the pact]. A lot depends on the mood of the people when we next go to the country. On the last occasion we encountered a feeling that 'there was no alternative'," Mr Quinn said.