The Progressive Democrats adopted a more conciliatory approach to their partners in the Government yesterday, stressing that they were happy to remain in coalition with Fianna Fáil, pending the Taoiseach's statement about the transactions surrounding his Drumcondra house in the 1990s.
Tánaiste Michael McDowell said he had "a very cordial and friendly meeting" with Bertie Ahern as they flew to Stormont on the Government jet.
He told reporters the Taoiseach had made it clear he intended to make a comprehensive statement. "I think the least all of us can do is give him the space to do that," he said.
Mr McDowell added that no timetable had been agreed for the statement. "These things take time and whatever time is necessary to do the job properly is what I believe he should take." There was speculation last night that the statement might not come until next week.
Mr Ahern, meanwhile, dismissed the controversy about the finances and said he would rather talk about something of importance to the country. "It's total nonsense, but sometimes politics is nonsense.
"I've answered these things before. There's nothing in all of this other than mischief. That's the order of the day, that people can create mischief to try and stir things up. It's a clever enough tactic. If you can't beat a person on a political base or on their political record, try and dig something up and throw it at me and that's what this is," he said in an RTÉ interview.
Minister for Health Mary Harney said she had no problem about remaining in the Government with Fianna Fáil at present. She stressed that the issue of accountability was crucial in deciding whether the PDs stayed in the Government.
"We are going to have accountability and I very much welcome that. And it's not accountability for Michael McDowell or Mary Harney or the Progressive Democrats for that matter. It's an issue for the public as we vote in this general election on who should form the next government."
Her colleague Liz O'Donnell said the PDs would be anxious to return to government with Fianna Fáil once the Taoiseach had answered the questions on his transactions in the early 1990s.
At the Labour Party's daily election briefing, environment spokesman Éamon Gilmore said the extraordinary events of the past few days, in which the Tánaiste had publicly questioned the honesty of the Taoiseach, meant the only stable government now available to the Irish people was the Labour- Fine Gael alliance.
"This Government is now broken and it is not going to be possible to put the pieces together again. Even if they hang together until May 24th . . . Fianna Fáil and the PDs will simply not be able to put together a credible and stable government which would enjoy the confidence of the Irish people," Mr Gilmore said.
