Independent Alliance candidate predicts Tánaiste may lose seat

The Independent Alliance’s newest candidate has predicted Tánaiste Joan Burton will lose her Dublin West seat in the general election.

Councillor David McGuinness, formerly of Fianna Fáil, was unveiled as an Independent Alliance candidate on Tuesday morning.

He told The Irish Times he believed Ms Burton was in "serious trouble" in the constituency and predicted she would lose her seat.

Responding on Tuesday to comments that her Dáil seat may be under threat on the basis of local polling results, Ms Burton said she is “very confident” of her re-election prospects.

“In every election I face a battle . . . . all I can say is that I’m very confident, certainly from the response that I’ve been receiving over the last couple of years.”

Mr McGuinness, from the working-class area of Corduff, had stood for the party in two byelections.

The Independent Alliance published its ‘Charter for Change’ on Tuesday.

Ms Burton's performance will be one of the big talking points of the coming election despite having topped the poll last time around with more than 9,500 votes.

Since then her party’s fortunes have ebbed and it struggled badly in the 2014 byelection.