Politics watch: General election confirmation imminent with Finance Bill to clear Dáil

James Cox

Here, we have a look at the topics likely to dominate political discourse in the week to come.

When will Taoiseach call the general election?

Sources have indicated Taoiseach Simon Harris will call the general election on Thursday, November 7th.

The most likely date is Friday, November 29th. November 22nd has been all but ruled out, and while a Friday in December is possible, November 29th appears to be the most likely date.

After months of speculation, Mr Harris finally confirmed the election will be held in 2024, adding that his preference was a Friday vote.

Finance Bill

The key piece of legislation before the dissolution of the Dáil is the Finance Bill. It is expected to clear the Dáil on Tuesday, following a four-hour debate in the schedule.

The Appropriations Bills, the Family Courts Bill, the Public Health (Tobacco) Amendment Bill and the Companies (Corporate Governance, Enforcement and Regulatory Provisions) Bill are also scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday.

A light Dáil schedule for Thursday has prompted speculation that this is the day Mr Harris will go to Áras an Uachtaráin to ask President Michael D Higgins to dissolve the Dáil.

Coalition parties to begin solo runs

The coalition Government has functioned reasonably well, despite the odd fallout.

The downside to this for those involved is many voters see little difference between the government parties, particularly Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil.

Tensions between those two and the Green Party have been evident for some time, but expect more clashes between Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil as they seek credit for this government's work while also ditinguishing their own identities.

Some saw briefings from Fine Gael sources calling Tánaiste and Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin 'grumpy', as the start of this.

Mr Martin has told those behind Fine Gael-attributed briefings describing him as a grumpy old man to “cop on”.

The Fianna Fáil leader suggested the “silly and ageist” lines were being fed to the media by Fine Gael “mandarins” in an attempt to create a point of difference with their party, which is led by the younger Simon Harris, who has claimed to bring a “new energy” to Government.

In an interview with the Sunday Independent, Mr Martin also asserted that he was a “person of substance” and “not a person of soundbites”.

Speaking to reporters in Co Kildare later on Sunday, he denied those remarks were a thinly veiled dig at Mr Harris.

Sinn Féin reeling from scandals

Sinn Féin seemed like the government in waiting for a long time, but the party is reeling from recent scandals and opinion polls suggest they won't perform as leader Mary Lou McDonald and her supporters had hoped.

The party's ambitious health plan will be an area they look to focus on, while Pearse Doherty accused the Government of missing its housing targets by a "country mile" during heated exchanges before the Dáil's current recess.

Abroad

In the UK, the country is facing the big cuts Labour announcement in its recent budget.

British prime minister Sir Keir Starmer now knows the identity of his biggest political rival, as right-wing MP Kemi Badenoch has been confirmed as the new Conservative Party leader, replacing Rishi Sunak.

It's too close to call with the US going to the polls tomorrow to choose their 47tj president. Donald Trump holds a slight lead in many national polls, but vice president Kamala Harris has been eating into thes leads, and the pair are essentially neck and neck.

Some polls still give Mr Trump the edge. However, a recent poll suggested Ms Harris could take Iowa, which had been forecast as a Republican certainty. Mr Trump took the state in 2016 and 2020.

The seven battleground states are: Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Many political analysts have predicted Pennsylvania will be the most important state, and this has been reflected in the amount of time Ms Harris and Mr Trump have spent campaigning in the state.

The state has 19 electoral votes, and was won by Joe Biden in 2020 and Mr Trump in 2016.

Counting can be delayed by days there, especially when the racr is as tight as polls predict it will be.

BreakingNews.ie will be reporting on the election all through the night, so you can follow the updates here.

There are plenty of options for television, with coverage on the likes of RTÉ, BBC and Sky News.

US outlets such as The New York Times and the Washington Post will also have live updates.

The US television options include ABC, CBS and NBC, CNN, Fox News and CNBC, with most of them also streaming coverage online.