What’s all this talk about a ‘New Party’?

» Eoin Ó Murchú

What is fascinating about this talk of a New Party is that there is barely any mention of what political positions it might have

EVEN THOUGH it owes much to the traditional ‘silly season’ lack of news throughout July and August, the media’s obsession with a New Party (don’t forget the capitals, dear reader) is a sure sign talk of the disintegration of the traditional political system and the deep fear of the privileged classes that a real challenge is emerging to their hegemony.

The fear is that the Establishment parties are being exposed, and opinion polls indicate a consistent doubling of Sinn Féin’s support, together with a massive number of ‘Don’t knows’ (37% of the electorate in the latest poll).

The Sunday Independent has been to the fore in the campaign for a ‘new departure’, with kite-flying stories about Róisín Shortall being in discussions about a new Labour Party; about Michael McDowell saying it’s a task for younger people; about Lucinda Creighton having lunch with the bold McDowell; and even about the anti-mortgage arrears campaigner Vincent Martin calling for a break with the old political system.

The Irish Times hasn’t been left out of this debate, of course, though (as befits ‘The Paper of Record’) the weighty observations of Fintan O’Toole and other commentators have a more intellectual weight behind them while equally lacking in substantive analysis.

The spectacular rise in Sinn Féin’s support together with a strong indication of support for Independents (for all shades of mavericks from Left to Right) is indeed a worrying development for the Establishment, especially as Labour’s support has plummeted so devastatingly as voters rightly reject a party that has betrayed them.

This is where the talk of the ‘New Party’ comes in.  How ‘new’ it will be is another matter.

What the Establishment commentators want is the old politics under a new form so that people will think there’s something new going on when really it’s just the same old delusion and trickery.

For what is fascinating about this talk of a New Party is that there is barely any mention of what political positions it might have.

The issues that need to be confronted are clear.  First of all, austerity: are you for it or against it? (Or, like the Labour Party backbenchers, are you for a little bit of it?)

You don’t have to be on the Left to oppose austerity, as Stephen Donnelly and, to a lesser extent, Shane Ross have shown. But all politicians have to have a position on the question.

Secondly, there is the issue of Europe: are in favour of or opposed to the European project of working towards a new super-state through increased integration (especially in the banking sphere)?

With current political choices revolving around EU decisions, this again is an issue that cannot be ignored.

Add to that the national question: where will a new party stand on the issue of building the Peace Process towards the inevitable reunification of the country, to  prioritising the revival of Irish, to ending emigration and building a sustainable independent economy?

Of course, there is a party that already has entered the political fray with clear positions on all these questions. And that party is Sinn Féin.

It doesn’t have a monopoly of correctness, and real politics will require Sinn Féin to work with those who genuinely want to advance any of these objectives.

But that’s a debate that the Establishment want to suppress. Their strategy is to demonise Sinn Féin, to constantly refer back to their own warped view of the Orange state and the resultant armed struggle, and to frighten voters about what Sinn Féin stands for.

But given the widespread anger that exists about the political system that produced this capitalist crisis, the Establishment desperately want to build up a pseudo-alternative – pseudo because the alternative they propose is no alternative at all.

So the next time you hear someone talking about the New Party, ask them what policies it should have on the key questions.

What we need is a break with austerity, a rejection of EU integrationism and the reassertion of the values of Irish independence and national revival.