A new opinion poll published this morning shows a massive drop in support for Independents.

They're down from 27 per cent at the general election to 14 per cent.

There were slight increases for Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin, in the wake of the BREXIT vote - possibly indicating the public's feeling on stability.

Philip Ryan, Journalist with the Sunday Independent, says there were a number of factors contributing to the drop in support for Independents: