The Taoiseach and the Tanaiste concede that yet another tribunal of inquiry may be required to investigate the contents of the letter between Mr Michael Bailey and Mr James Gogarty about the rezoning of 726 acres in north Dublin.
Spokesmen for Mr Ahern and Ms Harney do not exclude the possibility that Mr Ray Burke may have to appear before such an inquiry.
The apparent shift in the Government's rock-solid support for the Minister for Foreign Affairs came last night after an hour-long meeting between Mr Ahern and Ms Harney. It is understood that the two leaders arrived at the understanding that a new inquiry, separate from the Moriarty tribunal, could be required to stop the drip-feed of allegations engulfing and damaging Mr Burke.
The Taoiseach and the Tanaiste changed their stance after they acquired, and published, the contents of a letter between the two builders yesterday afternoon. In the letter, Mr Bailey of Bovale Construction spells out to Mr Gogarty, then an executive of Joseph Murphy Structural Engineers Ltd (JMSE), the "notoriously difficult, time-consuming and expensive" steps to be taken to get planning permission and "a majority vote at two full council meetings" to rezone six parcels of land.
The Taoiseach's spokesman said Mr Ahern believed the Magill extracts from the letter were used in "a manipulative and selective fashion. But that doesn't change the facts as presented in the letter." The Tanaiste's spokesman said Ms Harney's view was that "the letter might be sufficient to warrant a new tribunal of inquiry". Any differences between Ms Harney and Mr Ahern were denied.
The two leaders decided yesterday to investigate the facts surrounding the properties identified in the letter and have them made public. The Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey, has asked his officials to work over the weekend with council officials to establish the voting records of councillors and history of the land parcels. He expects a report on Monday.
Mr Ahern and Ms Harney will then decide on their next course of action. "For this issue to be part of the Moriarty tribunal is entirely inappropriate," the Government spokesman said. "The Taoiseach and the Tanaiste have not ruled out a new inquiry or tribunal," he added.
With the new revelations drawing nervous signals from Government ranks, some Government sources were anxious to confirm that the granting of a specially-designated status to some of the 85 acres of Bovale lands at Poppintree, Ballymun, in Mr Ruairi Quinn's last Budget would also come within the scope of the current internal investigation.
It now appears that Mr Ahern and Ms Harney - who had expressed themselves satisfied with Mr Burke's assurances about the circumstances surrounding the payment of a £30,000 donation during the 1989 election - are worried about the potential damage to their Coalition from constant allegations.
