The prospect of a Fianna Fáil government dependent on Sinn Féin moved to the centre of political debate yesterday. As the election campaign neared its end, a range of parties, including Sinn Féin itself, claimed that such a deal would be on the agenda after the election but the Taoiseach and his Ministers again ruled it out.
Mr Ahern was adamant that he would not form a government with Sinn Féin but the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Dermot Ahern, while also ruling out a deal, said that Fianna Fáil could form a minority government if Sinn Féin gave it unsolicited support.
"We can't stop Sinn Féin when the taoiseach is being nominated, as happened in a previous election, where the one Sinn Féin TD supported the taoiseach.
"We can't prevent them going in supporting the taoiseach, but we will not enter into any coalition arrangement, understanding, or behind-closed-doors deal with Sinn Féin in relation to their support for any issue," he said.
The Sinn Féin Deputy First Minister in the North, Martin McGuinness, said he had "no doubt" that the Taoiseach would seek Sinn Féin support to form a coalition government if the election resulted in a hung Dáil.
"I have no doubt whatsoever. I don't think that anybody who is a student of Irish politics and Fianna Fáil's desire to be in government would doubt that for one minute," said Mr McGuinness.
The Tánaiste, Michael McDowell, also intervened in the debate to raise the prospect of Sinn Féin holding the balance of power. Asked if he believed the Taoiseach when he said he would not go into government with or take the support of Sinn Féin, Mr McDowell said: "I would like to believe that is his position but I know if Sinn Féin gets sufficient votes in the next Dáil and if that constitutes the balance of power, no matter what anybody wishes or believes, they would in the last analysis be linchpin in deciding who gets in government."
The leaders of the alternative coalition, Enda Kenny and Pat Rabbitte, maintained that Fianna Fáil would be supported in office by Sinn Féin if there was a hung Dáil.
"I understand that Gerry Adams has now set up a negotiating team to negotiate with Fianna Fáil what might happen after the election. As far as I'm concerned, it's now very clear that a vote for Fianna Fáil may well be a vote for a government kept in office by the Sinn Féin party," said Mr Kenny.
Meanwhile in the other main focus of political debate, co-located hospitals, the Taoiseach said last night that the Minister for Finance, Brian Cowen, had given wrong figures for the cost of its plan to get developers to build private hospitals on public hospital grounds.
Mr Cowen, speaking on RTÉ's Questions and Answerson Monday night, said the plan would cost €70 million a year in tax forgone to the exchequer. However, Mr Ahern said the correct cost was €56 million gross, or €40 million net.
"Brian Cowen gave the right figures a week ago. In the middle of a programme it is very hard to get every figure right," the Taoiseach told RTÉ's Six One News.
Responding to the Taoiseach's interview, the Fine Gael leader, Enda Kenny, said: "Fianna Fáil falsehoods, misrepresentations and their campaign to frighten the electorate have been utterly exposed."
He said the Taoisaech had been forced to acknowledge that his Minister for Finance had got his sums badly wrong about the cost of the FF/PD co-location programme and had also been forced to accept that he had misrepresented the alternative coalition's tax proposals.
