Despite the bad legacy Fianna Fail have carried since the fall of the economy, the party is gaining in the popularity stakes.

The latest Irish Times latest MRBI poll shows them edging ahead of the current government by one per cent.

Michael Martin's party is on 26 per cent - Fine Gael is on 25 per cent, Sinn Fein at 18 per cent and Labour showing a 10 per cent support.

Fianna Fail's Daire O'Brien is welcoming the results: