SINN FÉIN LEADER Mary Lou McDonald has hit out at an election ad produced by Fine Gael that said her party would “raid” the public finances, calling it “astonishing”. 

McDonald questioned the claim made in the ad during a late-night interview on Virgin Media Television. 

“The cheek of them,” she said of Fine Gael, while making reference to recent public spending scandals like the infamous Leinster House bike shed and accusing the government of being “sloppy” with the public finances. 

McDonald defended the plans Sinn Féin has outlined in its manifesto, saying the party would invest in services but also run a surplus if it gets into power. 

McDonald questioned the accuracy of Fine Gael’s “raid” claim.

“Either that or they can’t read,” she said in reference to the Sinn Féin manifesto. 

During an hour-long interview that covered various topics, McDonald said the upcoming election represents “the opportunity of a lifetime” for voters. 

‘Nobody tells me what to do’ 

Asked by interviewer Colette Fitzpatrick how the public can trust Sinn Féin to govern the country since the party has never been in power, McDonald touted her own leadership in the face of personal and political challenges, as well as the recent record of Sinn Féin in government in Northern Ireland.  

“We’ve demonstrated that we can deliver change,” she said.

McDonald was also asked if there were senior party officials dictating to her how Sinn Féin should be run. 

“Nobody tells me what to do,” she replied, adding that she works with other senior Sinn Féin members like Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O’Neill and TD Pearse Doherty, but that ultimately she is the leader of the party. 

“I am the leader of the party, I’m democratically elected,” she said.  

“People look and see the progress that has been marked out,” McDonald said when asked about Sinn Féin and the IRA. 

She said she is “hopeful” that the next Irish government will work well on Troubles legacy issues with the UK government. 

Trump and foreign investment

“We should never, ever be complacent” McDonald said when asked about risks to the Irish economy that may come from the election of Donald Trump as US president. 

Trump has been touting an even more isolationist foreign and economic policy this year. 

“Trump has been in office before. This is not our first rodeo with this man,” she said while adding that she was “very, very alert” to the “challenge” that his presidency may bring. 

McDonald also noted that corporate tax receipts from foreign companies “carry with them a level of risk” and should not be relied on for the provision of essential services.