In a sign of ever-increasing tension within the Coalition government, Green Party leader Roderic O'Gorman has said Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are more focused on "political survival" than "good policy".
In an interview with The Sunday Times, Mr O'Gorman said: "Ultimately we have a programme for government, but the other two parties — and they may say this about ourselves — their political survival is important to them and there have been times when I feel the needs of politics have maybe superseded the needs of good policy and what the government should be doing,”
Mr O'Gorman also said the Green Party would be ready for a pre-Christmas general election, as speculation persists about a November general election despite Taoiseach Simon Harris' insistence that it will be in 2025.
While Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil will likely look to form another coalition government, it may well be without the Green Party.
There have been increasing tensions between the coalition partners, which surfaced recently as Mr O'Gorman's party criticised government plans to delay Residential Zoned Land Tax (RZLT).
In the interview, Mr O'Gorman, who replaced Eamon Ryan in July, also said he would look to speak with the Social Democrats and Labour after the next election before talks with their current partners.
When asked about potential talks with Sinn Féin, he was uncertain.
“I’m never quite clear where they stand on environmental issues; wanting to get rid of the carbon tax and the way we can invest in supporting people with low income. I’m not really clear where they stand on migration at the moment. So I don’t necessarily put them in that category, no."
