Third car lucky

It has been a bad week for political cars. TD and MEP Proinsias De Rossa was involved in a slight altercation with a bus outside Dublin's Gresham Hotel on Tuesday when his BMW was clipped on the side. There were no injuries and both parties drove off afterwards. But junior minister at Agriculture, Noel Davern wasn't so lucky. His Merc (his own, not the State's), disappeared from Milltown, Dublin last week and the only sign of it since was the number plates and his good overcoat, which were discarded up the Dublin mountains near the Noel Lemass memorial. His confidential little black book of ministerial phone numbers was found dumped on a suburban road. Then last Wednesday, his hired car was rear-ended on his way into Leinster House. Now Davern is looking for a third car. It's all a bad start to his job as director of elections for FF in the Tipp South by-election.