DÁIL REPORT:TÁNAISTE BRIAN Cowen has insisted that "we will not have political mob rule in parliament" as he accused Fine Gael of a witch-hunt against Taoiseach Bertie Ahern.
Mr Cowen stressed that he wanted to make it clear that "the Taoiseach is giving his evidence truthfully, the same as other people" at the Mahon tribunal.
As he faced questions about the Taoiseach's finances for the second day running, and was accused by Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny of giving "less than 100 per cent support" to Mr Ahern, the Tánaiste said Mr Kenny was asking every second day "whether I agree with this or that statement. If the man said it, I'm sure it's true."
He added: "That's what the judge is doing. That evidence has to be evaluated."
Stating that the Taoiseach was giving his evidence truthfully like other people at the tribunal, Mr Cowen hit out at Mr Kenny and said that "the evaluation of that evidence will be decided by the judges who have been appointed by the Oireachtas, not by you. You're neither qualified nor able to evaluate that evidence".
During leaders' questions Mr Kenny pointed to comments by the Tánaiste in the Dáil on Tuesday that the Mahon tribunal had a "bogus dollar claim".
He also claimed that Fianna Fáil TD Frank Fahey had said the Mahon tribunal was conducting a "witch-hunt" against the Taoiseach. The Tánaiste retorted that "Fine Gael is conducting a witch-hunt" that "regularly runs into the sand".
Labour leader Eamon Gilmore suggested that the Tánaiste's replies "are beginning to sound more and more like the chairman of the board of a club expressing full confidence in the manager".
Mr Gilmore called on Mr Cowen to ask the Taoiseach to withdraw his legal challenge to the tribunal, which would need another six to nine months to complete its work.
Mr Cowen said that Mr Ahern was taking a case in the High Court on substantive issues.
Judge Mahon had made a point in the tribunal that it was open to any person to seek legal redress in the courts on any issue and he did not regard it as a wrong thing to do.
Mr Cowen stressed that "the right to constitutional and natural justice is an unenumerated constitutional right in case law and before the courts.
"It is available to every citizen, however humble or eminent".
Mr Gilmore insisted that "it is as clear to the Tánaiste as it is to every deputy on this side of the House and most members of the Government that Mr Ahern's days as Taoiseach are numbered".
There was some humour when Mr Gilmore suggested that Minister for Defence Willie O'Dea had nothing to smile about because "he took an each-way bet by having two articles in the Sunday Independent, one defending the Taoiseach and the other praising the Minister for Finance". Mr Cowen quipped that "that's not a mutually exclusive proposition".
Mr Gilmore said the issue "to be faced up to is whether Mr Ahern's departure from office will be long and painful" or whether the Tánaiste would act. "The half-hearted defence he has given the Taoiseach over the past two days does not fill me with a great deal of confidence that his support will continue."
The Tánaiste should gather a "couple of senior Ministers", knock on the Taoiseach's door and tell him "the game is up".
Mr Cowen replied that there was nothing he could say that would give Mr Gilmore sufficient confidence. "Your job is to try to ebb confidence away from the Government," and he added "if ever I want advice on coups or conspiracies, I can knock on the door of former Workers' Party activists".
