LABOUR PRESIDENTIAL candidate Michael D Higgins has said he is willing to consider a one-on-one debate with his Independent rival Seán Gallagher after weekend polls showed both well ahead of the other Áras hopefuls.
With the contest entering the last 10 days, Mr Higgins said he would have no difficulty with a debate with Mr Gallagher if one were organised. However, he did not wish to appear presumptuous, given the volatility of the polls, or unfair to the other candidates. "If it came down to it, it would be useful if there was a straightforward debate between the two of us," he told The Irish Timeslast night.
Mr Higgins predicted any debate with his business-oriented rival would run along left-right lines politically: “There’s no doubt where he’s coming from and it is a view of the right. It’s a debate between the social economy and the speculative economy.”
A spokeswoman for Mr Gallagher said a two-way debate with the Labour candidate was unlikely because of the difficulty of fitting in such an event in a busy schedule.
Meanwhile, Labour and Fine Gael sources said there was little likelihood of a vote-transfer pact between Mr Higgins and Fine Gael’s candidate Gay Mitchell, who has slumped even further in the polls. Sources said Mitchell supporters were likely to transfer to the candidate of the other Coalition party and a formal arrangement could discourage transfers from other candidates.
All seven candidates are due to debate on TG4 tomorrow and on RTÉ 1's Frontlinenext Monday. Independent candidate David Norris indicated last night he would make a significant speech on the steps of Leinster House this morning.
With one poll yesterday showing Mr Gallagher in the lead for the first time, Mr Higgins went on the offensive by urging voters not to go for “a revival of a failed option of the leftovers of the Celtic Tiger”.
Without referring by name to Mr Gallagher, who has repeatedly stressed his business credentials, Mr Higgins called on the electorate to “look at the record” when talking about job creation.
Speaking on RTÉ radio, he claimed he helped create thousands of jobs in the film industry while minister for arts in the 1990s.
Mr Gallagher said he was heartened by his figures but wasn’t being complacent: “The polls are representing a message of positivity. People are tired of the negativity.”
The latest poll figure confirms the findings of the last Irish Timessurvey which showed the Gallagher surge. The Sunday Business Postpoll shows support for the Dragons' Den panellist rising 18 points to 39 per cent, 12 points ahead of Mr Higgins, who rose two points to 27 per cent. Polling took place before last Wednesday's Prime Time debate.
A Sunday Independentpoll carried out later in the week shows Mr Higgins continuing to lead the field with 36 per cent support.