The race to the Dáil is a marathon, not a sprint

For the last 18 months, Fianna Fáil insiders have privately claimed that "if we were choosing a constituency to have a by-election in, it would be Donegal South West." It was the one by-election where the party had a fighting chance, or so it thought. But Senator Brian Ó Domhnaill failed to cut the mustard in Thursday's by-election and could not have contested an election for Fianna Fáil at a worse time. Ó Domhnaill and his brother Seamus were athletes in years gone by; Brian was actually a race walker in another life. The race to the Dáil is not a sprint, it's a marathon for a lot of TDs. Perhaps Ó Domhnaill can take some solace from last week's by-election showing, and use it as a stepping stone on his long walk to the Dáil.

House of the setting sun

The atmosphere has been funereal around Leinster House since the IMF arrived. The exception to this has been the growing number of TDs going around with a bounce in their step. They are the TDs who have announced their intention to resign from politics. Sinn Féin's Arthur Morgan has never been in better form, and even told the Dáil, "My hope is I will not be in the House for much longer!" One observer noted that Labour's Mary Upton was a "new woman" since she announced she was leaving the madhouse. And veteran Fine Gael TDs Ulick Burke, Seymour Crawford and Paul Connaughton are also heading for the hills. While dozens of other TDs will leave the Dáil in January, a raft of fresh faces will contest the election. The Insider understands that Morgan's parliamentary assistant Kathryn Reilly, who is in her 20s, is expected to be added to the Sinn Féin ticket in Cavan/Monaghan with Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin.

'Lucky' Healy pumped up and ready to go again

After independent TD Séamus Healy lost his seat by just 59 votes in 2007 he certainly did not believe he was Ireland's luckiest man. But with more time on his hands, he went for a medical check-up that showed up three heart blockages. Within a week, he underwent a triple bypass and has not looked back since. The former TD, who said he was "absolutely blessed" that he lost his seat, may be about to return to the Dáil, as he was unveiled last Thursday as one of the candidates who will contest the general election as part of the Joe Higgins-led United Left Alliance.

A right-wing think tank launched last Sunday has already changed its name. Newstalk economics editor Marc Coleman is among the figures behind a body called The National Forum. Originally called The National Alliance, the body had undergone a name change by the time it held its first press conference on Thursday due to fears that the original name sounded like that of a political party and not a think-tank.