The future of the United Left Alliance (ULA) was thrown into doubt last night with the announcement by South Tipperary independent TD Séamus Healy that he was departing the group.
In a statement, Mr Healy said he was leaving the group because his calls for the resignation of Independent TD Mick Wallace over his tax affairs had been vetoed.
A member of the Workers and Unemployed Action Group, Mr Healy said, “As an organisation committed to tax equity and defence of public services, we now believe that we can more effectively campaign for these objectives outside the United Left Alliance”.
He said his group had become “increasingly concerned by the factional activity” of the Socialist Workers Party, which he claimed had prioritised recruitment to its own party over building the ULA.
The ULA was formed before the 2011 general election to bring left-wing parties together. It was originally envisaged that the alliance would become a party, a prospect that has become more remote recently.