Fine Gael will showcase its policies this weekend, but do its leading figures have enough star quality, asks Mark Brennock, Chief Political Correspondent
So now Fine Gael is going to produce policies. Tomorrow in Millstreet party spokespeople will unveil policy documents on primary healthcare, renewable energy, competition, the food industry, childcare and anti-social behaviour. Fianna Fáil and the PDs have been attacking Fine Gael for two months now for having no policies. From tomorrow they will have to attack them for something else - perhaps for the content of the policies.
This weekend's Fine Gael event is a party conference, not an ardfheis. The difference is that at an ardfheis motions can be passed and people elected to various bodies. But the distinction is minimal: In the case of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil, ardfheiseanna and party conferences are rallies organised to grab media coverage and make local party members conscious of their membership of a national organisation.
Some 3,000 delegates will gather at Millstreet's Green Glens Arena to cheer on the unveiling of policies in a range of areas. The party is building steadily towards a 2007 general election. With hindsight Fine Gael strategists portray the party's activities since the 2002 general election as part of a carefully phased plan. This weekend's conference, they maintain, brings the launch of phase four. Each of these phases lasts a calendar year. The first involved the restructuring of the party organisation, cheered on by a nationwide tour of the party by Enda Kenny.
Phase two was the restoration of electoral credibility by working towards a successful local and European Parliament election result in 2004.
Phase three brought the building of the prospect of an alternative government alliance, the Mullingar accord, Dáil co-operation and all of that.
This phase four brings the production of a series of policies on a variety of issues over the next year or so. Phase five, obviously, is to involve the triumphant march to power in the 2007 general election.
"New Team, New Ideas" is the slogan that will adorn the party platform over the weekend. The party wants to showcase not only its policies, but also the people it hopes will be implementing them in government. And here lies one of Fine Gael's problems, for the party's front bench is hardly a star-studded show. Apart from Enda Kenny, who has been built up successfully into a leadership figure since 2002, the party's most substantial asset is Richard Bruton, a serious policy-driven politician of substance and conviction. Two of the party's better performers, Gay Mitchell and Simon Coveney, are currently semi-detached from domestic politics due to their membership of the European Parliament. Beyond that there are several competent and presentable frontbench figures but it is hard to pick out the obvious bright figures the party needs to dominate the media in the run up to the next general election and portray Fine Gael as the party of the future.
Those getting exposure to the party and the media tomorrow include Denis Naughten, agriculture spokesman, who will give details of policy on the food industry. Liam Twomey will outline policy on primary healthcare, Phil Hogan on competition, Fergus O'Dowd on renewable energy, David Stanton on childcare and Jim O'Keeffe on anti-social behaviour. Other frontbench members getting a run out include Richard Bruton (finance) who will talk about taxation, Olwyn Enright (education), Bernard Allen (foreign affairs), Olivia Mitchell (transport) and Bernard Durkan (communications).
Many on the "New Team" then, are not so new, although if the party has a good general election there will be plenty of new faces around come 2007.
As for the "New Ideas", the sessions cover the issues on which Fine Gael has been attacking the Government: the health services, wasteful public spending, childcare and the party's modern echo of its law and order tradition - anti-social behaviour. They are also reinforcing the emphasis on their commitment to promoting alternative sources of energy, no doubt in an effort to prepare for a possible alliance and coalition with the Green Party.
At this stage of the electoral cycle, probably 18 months from polling day, the task facing Government and Opposition parties is to neutralise the issues on which the other side is scoring points, while ensuring that your own message remains fresh. The Government parties are attempting to steadily go through the issues on which the Opposition has been making capital. The abolition of the Groceries Order is intended to reduce the public clamour for something to be done about high prices; last week's Transport 21 plan is to suggest that despite current transport shortcomings, the Government has a strategy; the forthcoming estimates and Budget will address the childcare issue, neutralising Opposition claims that nothing is being done.
On the other side as the Opposition parties begin to produce policies, the Government parties will give up on accusing them of having none. And as Fine Gael and Labour flesh out their ideas on taxation, the Government parties will probably have to move on from accusing them of planning to raise taxes and cause a flight of capital leading to national catastrophe. The evidence of recent opinion polls has been that many voters are tired of the Government, would consider an alternative, but are so far not convinced that Fine Gael and Labour are what they are looking for. This weekend Fine Gael will begin in earnest the attempt to convince them.
