Sinn Fein president Mary Lou McDonald has accused Fine Gael and Fianna Fail of treating her party’s voters as second-class citizens.
Ms McDonald suggested her rivals’ outright dismissal of Sinn Fein as a potential coalition partner demonstrated a lack of respect for the party’s supporters.
Her comments came amid increasing focus on coalition permutations post the General Election in Ireland.
Launching her party’s proposals on housing at an event in west Dublin on Tuesday, Ms McDonald accused the lead parties in the last government of showing a lack of humility.
“If I was to listen to the coalition parties, I wouldn’t get up out of bed in the morning,” she said.
“They can’t pass a microphone without stating how appalled they are, and how they will never ever, ever speak to Sinn Fein.
“They were at that in the last election as well.
“Let me just on that make this point – a lot of people vote for Sinn Fein, rely on us to represent them. I would ask Fianna Fail and Fine Gael to try and muster at least a little bit of respect for the communities and the voters who vote for us.
“They’re not second-class citizens, they are equal voters, just like everybody else, and I think they should demonstrate a little bit of humility and a little bit of respect towards those citizens too.”
Asked about the Sinn Fein leader’s comments, Tanaiste Micheal Martin said that Ms McDonald had made similar comments about Fianna Fail.
“Mary Lou has said to voters that they shouldn’t go into government with Fianna Fail,” he said speaking in Dublin.
“Sinn Fein has said that the last party they should go into government (with) is Fianna Fail and Fine Gael.
“If that’s the case I don’t understand how Mary Lou can say … it’s an insult if you say that Sinn Fein can’t be in government but it’s not an insult if you say Fianna Fail shouldn’t be in government.”
He said that Sinn Fein’s opposition to the current economic model that Ireland has and what he called a Eurosceptic party “at their core” meant the parties were not compatible.
He has said the party would not be happy to go into government with Sinn Fein, but added that, as with any government formation talks, it will come down to policies and principles.
“I always respect the electorate, always, people are entitled to different perspectives.”
While Ms McDonald has said the “best outcome” of the election would be a government without Fine Gael and Fianna Fail, she has stopped short of ruling out entering into a partnership with her long-term rivals.
“Our position of wanting to have a government beyond Fianna Fail and Fine Gael is now a long-standing one, there’s nothing new in it,” she told reporters on Tuesday.
“We believe after a century of those two parties dominating and running government that the time is right now for a change, that is the answer, that is the way in which we can make the changes that will benefit our society.”
At the launch of his party’s manifesto in Dublin, Green Party leader Roderic O’Gorman was asked about the prospect of re-entering government after the Greens served as a junior partner in the last administration.
“First of all, I haven’t heard anybody rule us out,” he said.
“What I’ve heard is an attempt, I think, by Fine Gael and Fianna Fail to get the numbers themselves that they won’t need any support, but if there’s a need for additional parties, I think those negotiations will take place.
“We’ve demonstrated that we can negotiate hard. We’ve demonstrated that we can create a really effective programme for government, but we’re making it very clear today that increased investment, 10 billion into public transport, is a key issue for us in those programme for government negotiations.”
Meanwhile, Social Democrats leader Holly Cairns said the government parties were acting as if the election is “sewn up”.
“I see them even talking about which ministries they want, who might go first as taoiseach, eyeing up their coalition partners – all of these kind of things is astounding to see,” she said.
“If there’s anything I learned from the last election, a lot can change in three weeks.”
