Former Minister for Defence Willie O’Dea has contradicted Taoiseach Brian Cowen’s account of his resignation and backed Green Party leader John Gormley’s version of the events that led to his departure from office.
Mr Cowen insisted on Friday Mr O’Dea had come to the conclusion that he must resign from the Cabinet without any coercion from him or the Green Party.
In contrast, Mr Gormley maintained that he had told the Taoiseach that Mr O’Dea’s position was untenable and the stability of the Government would be under threat if he stayed in office.
Speaking in Limerick on Friday, Mr O’Dea made it clear that he had resigned from office because the Green Party was no longer prepared to support the Government if he stayed on.“I decided to resign after speaking to the Taoiseach and it became clear that the Green Party would no longer support the Government if I were to stay in the Government.”
Mr O’Dea said he had resigned in the interests of the country to ensure that there was stability in Government in the middle of a very serious economic crisis.
“I can think of other situations affecting Ministers, which I won’t elaborate on now, which were far worse but they survived. I recall being in a government with one of them and at the time I didn’t call for his resignation – in fact I defended him in every way possible.”
The Taoiseach insisted Mr O'Dea had come to his own conclusion that he must resign from the Cabinet, independently and without coercion from him or the Green Party. During a visit to Tara Mines in Co Meath on Friday, Mr Cowen said Mr O'Dea had contacted his office shortly after his interview on Thursday with Seán O'Rourke on the News at One RTÉ radio programme and was already moving towards a decision to step down by the time he and Mr Gormley discussed the matter later on that day. "It had already been indicated to me by Willie O'Dea that he was very much of the view that he did not want his presence in Government to become a matter of instability for Government," said Mr Cowen.
Mr Cowen said his relationship with the Green Party and its leader, John Gormley, remained excellent and predicted that the Government would last its full term.
Speaking in Cork, Mr Gormley said he had informed the Taoiseach on Thursday that Mr O’Dea’s position was no longer tenable and that his continuation in office threatened the stability of the Government.
Mr Gormley said Mr Cowen recognised the seriousness of the situation regarding Mr O’Dea’s position and how it was distracting from the business of Government and he had acted accordingly by seeking Mr O’Dea’s resignation.
“I outlined our concerns in detail and I indicated to the Taoiseach that, in my view, Minister O’Dea’s position was untenable and the stability of the Government would be under threat as a consequence and it would prove a real distraction.”
Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny said Mr O’Dea had left behind a Cabinet whose credibility was in tatters. He said the debacle raised fundamental questions about the Taoiseach’s willingness to enforce proper standards of behaviour in his Government.
Mr Kenny said the affair raised grave doubts about the judgment of the Taoiseach and the Cabinet, and the Green Party was now probably looking for an exit strategy from Government.
Labour leader Eamon Gilmore said the Taoiseach may well have damaged the Government beyond repair and had certainly shortened its likely term of office by proceeding with the confidence motion last Wednesday.