Girls give Mitchell and Davis a grilling

FINE GAEL presidential candidate Gay Mitchell was obviously in confessional mood yesterday, revealing he could “feel sorry for myself” and was “sometimes self-indulgent”.

Mr Mitchell visited Loreto College, Foxrock, in Dublin, and took questions from the girls, one of whom amused her schoolmates by asking: “What is your greatest weakness that can’t also be looked on as an advantage?” Mr Mitchell laughed too, before admitting to being self-indulgent sometimes, which he acknowledged was not a good thing: “There are days when I feel sorry for myself . . . I said to somebody recently, we’re three months into the campaign and I’m not getting a good night’s sleep.”

He also confessed to “over-indulging on McDonald’s” occasionally, while patting his stomach, which raised a laugh. He had agreed with a pupil who pointed out that obesity rates in Ireland were rising, saying it was once only a problem he noticed when he visited America.

He described the presidency as a “lonely institution”, saying the person who became president would need political experience.

“Sometimes politicians, like teachers or like parents, have to take difficult decisions,” he said.

When another pupil asked, “How do we know that you’re going to stick to everything and follow through?”, Mr Mitchell told them about his political career: “I even had the temerity to ask could we someday host the Olympics.”

Special Olympics chief and Independent presidential candidate Mary Davis was the only one of the other six hopefuls able to attend yesterday’s event.

Ms Davis arrived after Mr Mitchell, although her campaign bus got stuck on the corner coming up the hill to the school. Mr Mitchell’s branded minibus had no such problems.

Ms Davis was also asked about her greatest weakness.

“My greatest weakness is I work incredibly hard all the time.” When the girls laughed, she added: “Well, working hard can be a disadvantage as well because it’s difficult to get a work/life balance . . .” As the laughter continued, she said: “You don’t think so?”

Asked about ways to encourage more young people and young women into politics, she said some people favoured quotas systems. “For myself I think it’s better women are absolutely encouraged to get involved in playing their part in politics.”

A pupil put it to Ms Davis that Mr Mitchell, who spoke before her, had stressed his experience in politics. “Well now it all depends on what is meant by politics . . .

“If politics is about making things we thought impossible possible, then I have vast experience in those areas.”