Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and Tánaiste Michael McDowell today vowed to continue in Government together and dismissed suggestions of a rift in the wake of the controversy surrounding Mr Ahern's financial affairs.
The two men made statements to reporters in Government Buildings saying they had agreed to amend the State's ethics legislation covering gifts and loans to public office holders.
Michael McDowell
The proposed measures include a provision requiring office holders - who propose to accept a significant gift or loan - to seek the confidential opinion of the Standards in Public Office Commission (SPOC).
The SPOC will have to consider if the gift is likely or not to compromise the recipient in the discharge of his or her duties. Failure to inform the SPOC or to go along with its opinions will be considered an offence.
Mr Ahern said he believed these additions to the ethical code "will give confidence to the public and provide assurance to public representatives about the reasonableness of the required and actual standard of behaviour of those in public life."
He described as an "error of judgment" his decision to accept loans and payments from friends and businessmen when he was Minister for Finance in 1993 and 1994 which he said "created no obligation or expectation of influence".
He claimed his decision to accept the monies was "open to a construction at the variance with the facts. It was capable of misinterpretation - albeit in some cases deliberately - and it has undoubtedly created upset and confusion".
Mr McDowell said the Progressive Democrats believed it "was, and is, wrong to accept gifts or loans from strangers while holding public office regardless of the spirit in which such gifts or loans were offered or accepted.
But he criticised those who leaked the information to The Irish Timesand said the majority of people "believes, by all accounts, the Taoiseach was right to acknowledge his errors in 1993/4, and I have every reason to believe that the same majority will back the measures agreed by Government today.
"It would be grotesque if the unlawful actions of a leaker should accomplish their purpose by breaking apart the most successful Government in the history of the independent Irish State," Mr McDowell said.
"It would be an act of supreme moral and political folly to reward the wrongful actions of a leaker in this way. It would also amount to a failure of politics and statecraft if such were the result.
"I want to take this opportunity to reject as completely untrue the suggestion that there were angry exchanges between myself and the Taoiseach. There have never been any angry words between myself and the Taoiseach in the last seven years - or indeed before then as far as I can recollect," he said.
Mr Ahern echoed the Tánaiste's sentiments saying the two enjoyed a "close and friendly relationship" which "was not diminished in any way in our positive discussions over recent days".
But this afternoon Fine Gael described the deal as a band-aid to cover the gaping sore at the heart of Government.
The party's environment spokesman, Fergus O'Dowd said: "The PDs have wrestled with their conscience and won. What we have now is the smallest fig leaf possible to hide the PDs' embarrassment at their self-serving decision to stay in power."
Earlier, the Labour Party said the proposals were "a cover-up for the PDs not asking the questions and getting the answers they should have last week when they had the opportunity".
Party leader Pat Rabbitte said: "It's either you know you should do it, or you know you shouldn't do it."
