So tonight we get the third poll in a week! This one if from the Irish Times/Ipsos MRBI. The headline figures are as follows:

• Fianna Fail: 24+3.
• Fine Gael 24-3.
• Labour 33.+4.
• Green 2-2.
• Sinn Fein 8-2.
• Others 9 nc.

In terms of leaders its:

• Cowen 19+1.
• Kenny 25+1.
• Gilmore 49 +3.

This is compared with last Sundays Sunday Business Post/Red C Poll:

• Fine Gael 31 (-2)
• Fianna Fail 24,(nc)
• Labour 23 (-4)
• SinnFein 10 (+2)
• Green 3 (+1)
• Others 9 (+3)

You then have to compare it also to last weeks TV3/Milward Brown poll which had these results:

• Fianna Fail: 22
• Fine Gael: 30
• Labour: 35
• Green: 2
• Sinn Fein: 4
• Others: 8

As you can see from the three polls, the only thing they agree on its Fianna Fail support in the 22-24% area. The Polls also agree on the level of support for the Green Party who seem to be stuck in the margin of error with support of around 2-3%.

Fine Gael vary from 24% in Ipsos MORI to 33% with Red C. Labour also vary from 23% in the Red C poll to 35% in the Milward Brown Poll. Sinn Fein’s support also varies but not as much. They are on 4% according to Milward Brown but on 10% according to Red C.

We can only assume that the actual figures are in between those results.

Red C is often seen by political activists (well the ones I have met) as being the one that is most accurate. Going by the results of the other two polls I am not sure if I go along with that theory.

To me all these polls show is that there is a lot of votes out there to be fought for. At the moment Labour are doing a better job of getting them, will that change as the Dáil session gets underway? The next set of polls should  let us know that.

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They have also updated the country predictions. For Ireland they are forcasting the following.

• Fine Gael 6 MEPs (31%) +1 (+3.2%)
• Fianna Fail 4 MEPs (31%) -1 (+1.5%)
• Labour 1 MEP (14%) nc (+3.4%)
• Sinn Fein 0 MEPs (7.8%) -1 (-3.3%)
• Green Party 0 MEPs (6.6%) nc (+2.3%)
• Independents 1 MEP (9.2%) -1 (6.3%)

They predict that Sinn Fein’s Mary Lou McDonald will be the one to lose out in Dublin considering she holds Sinn Feins only European seat in the South. The independent they forcast losing the seat is the ALDE independent which is Marian Harkin in Ireland North-West. They are predicting that Sen Joe O’Reilly will take a second seat for Fine Gael in Ireland North-West. While this would be great, I don’t think it will be likely that Harkin will lose the seat. I think that Fianna Fail are in danger of loosing this seat since sitting MEP Seán Ó Neachtain will not be running. The current Fianna Fail candidate is Paschal Mooney a Leitrim Councillor but he would not be aswell known as many of the other candidates in the constituency. Last time out it took transfers from Dr. Jim McDaid TD to keep Fianna Fail in. I wonder will Fine Gael get the 6 seats?

The other poll is the Red C poll for the Sunday Business Post. The topline figures are as follows (from Irish Election):

• Fine Gael 33% +2
• Fianna Fail 23% -5
• Labour 19% +2
• Sinn Fein 8% +1
• Greens 7% nc
• Others/Independents 10%

This gives Fine Gael a full 10% lead over Fianna Fail. But should we be further ahead? When it came to the European and Local elections Fine Gael does lose out on votes to independents, but that is normal. Interestingly Libertas is only polling at 2%, so I doubt they will be gaining any seats in Ireland.

The poll was conducted earlier in the week before McGuiness’s outburst on the Late Late last night. I wonder will that effect how people perceive the Government?