Michael lowry says he would support fine gael to form the next government

Michael Lowry has given strong indications that he could be in a position to support Fine Gael as it turns to Independent TDs in the hope of retaining power after the next general election.

Contacted by The Nenagh Guardian and asked for his reaction following revelations this week by Taoiseach Enda Kenny that he is willing to involve Independent TDs in future negotiations aimed at forming the next government, Mr Lowry stressed that he still had strong links with Fine Gael.

'I come from a Fine Gael background and have given most of my political career in Fine Gael.'

The Independent Tipperary TD pointed out that he had supported the Fianna Fáil-led coalition government of  2007-2011 'in the interests of my constituency', and that arrangement had worked 'extremely well'.

He then gave a strong hint that a similar arrangement might be possible if Fine Gael was in a position to form a goverment after the next election: 'I have a background in Fine Gael and I still retain many friendships within the party. . . If you enter a political agreement you have to be committed and you have to be loyal, and I have proven to be that in the past while under extreme pressure.'

'To honour your commitments is hugely important and I have done that. We have seen independents in the past who felt it was a good idea to support government, but when the heat came on that [their support] evaporated.'

The prospect of Mr Lowry being in a position to support a future minority Fine Gael-led government will undoubtedly lead to speculation that the Tipperary TD could be in a powerful postition to again attract considerable investment to the county, similar to 2007 when he asserted that he had done a multi-million euro deal for his former North Tipperary consituency with Bertie Ahern in return for his support for the government of the day.

'Independents who are sensible and practical will have a huge say in the formation of the next government. . . If I retain the confidence and support of the people of Tipperary in the next general election I would then access the situation and see who is in a position to form the next government.'

He said his support for the former coalition government made up of Fianna Fáil, the Progressive Democrats and the Green Party, had brought great benefits to North Tipperary in the form of investment in new schools, and had also resulted in preventing the closure of Nenagh Hospital, instead attracting millions of euro in investment  in the facility.

Mr Lowry said there was a sea change taking place in Irish politics that he first predicted eight years ago. It had been obvious to him for years that the 'extreme left' was going to become much stronger. He said he had long predicted that Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil would have to look seriously at the possibility of a political alignment.

The Independent TD said he was 'rather amused' by the 'unseemly haste' shown by a variety of independent TDs, including  a number elected for the first time in 2011, to form alignments  when they may not even get re-elected next time out.