Rabbitte is not a happy bunny

HELL hath no fury like a Rabbitte scorned – or so it appears.

The former Communications Minister is keeping everyone guessing as to whether or not he’ll do Labour the honour of contesting the next general election in Dublin South West. Since being dropped from Cabinet by Joan Burton last year, Pat Rabbitte has refused to confirm his intentions but says he’ll make up his mind in the coming months.

While Joe Public isn’t too bothered by Rabbitte’s dithering, it must be a source of some irritation within his own party.

A TD since 1989, the one-time Labour leader was part of the old guard – along with Eamon Gilmore and Ruairi Quinn – to be swept out of Cabinet when Joan Burton got a hold of that new broom last year.

Keen to set out her stall early, Burton was fully entitled to freshen up her front bench on taking over the Labour leadership at such a tumultuous time for the party.

Rabbitte didn’t exactly accept the decision with good grace, opining that a combination of

“age and chemistry

? was a factor in his sacking.

He certainly has good reason to take stock of his electoral prospects. Rabbitte does, after all, represent a largely working class constituency. Following their stint in Government since 2011, Labour is perceived as being about as proletariat as the Progressive Democrats.

The anti-water charges campaign has been particularly vocal in Tallaght, as Joan Burton discovered to her cost when she ended up trapped in her car in Jobstown last November. If voters decide to exact their revenge on Labour – as the polls suggest – there could be high profile casualties in left leaning constituencies like Dublin South West (Rabbitte) and Dublin West (Burton).

Pat Rabbitte seems to be feeling the pressure, which might explain his recent tirade against RTÃ? when he described the national broadcaster as

“recruiting sergeants

? for the far left.

RTÃ? (somewhat graciously, if you ask me) then allowed Rabbitte a prime slot on

‘The Saturday Night Show’ where he took credit for Joan Burton’s political elevation; something along the lines that it was good for the Labour Party’s image to have women in senior positions.

It may have been a well-aimed dig at his new boss but it landed Rabbitte in hot water with the National Women’s Council of Ireland.

To me, Pat Rabbitte sounds like a wounded political animal with nothing left to lose. My guess is that we won’t be seeing his name on the ballot paper in the next election.

Post politics, what does the future hold for a man of Rabbitte’s considerable talents? Don’t be too surprised if he reinvents himself as a loquacious, opinionated media commentator on the airwaves.

And maybe if he’s a bit nicer to RTÃ?, they might even offer him his own show.