Minister for Finance Brian Cowen yesterday staunchly defended Taoiseach Bertie Ahern over the Manchester payment.
Speaking on the issue for the first time, the Minister argued, at times heatedly, with Fine Gael's Richard Bruton on RTÉ radio.
Mr Cowen said the Taoiseach had volunteered the information to the tribunal, in an RTÉ interview and provided answers in the Dáil. He also spoke to the media in Cavan.
"To be honest with you, by trying to deal with these matters on an hourly and daily basis, with various different questions and everything being asked, leads to more comment rather than people just dealing with it and closing it up," the Minister said.
"This man, the Taoiseach of this country, when asked, put all of this matter into the tribunal proceedings as he was requested to do on the basis that they would remain confidential."
Mr Bruton said he thought the Taoiseach deserved the opportunity to give answers. However, he said three minutes from the Opposition to deal with this was just not adequate.
"The Taoiseach and his Ministers have consistently claimed that the Taoiseach did nothing wrong and I think the Manchester payment clearly strains credibility to breaking point on that question because the Government guidelines, in my view, are very clear that Ministers do not accept gifts," Mr Bruton said.
"It's more the issue of is it right that the minister for finance of the day should be getting donations of this nature that clearly compromise the position of the office. Is this correct behaviour, that's what the Taoiseach has to answer."
Mr Cowen replied: "There's no question of anything dishonest or corrupt occurring here whatsoever. None. And it does not become anybody to involve themselves in that speculation. There is no evidence whatsoever. I think its only fair now that people stopped that sort of mud-raking that's going on."
The Taoiseach accepted a non-taxable gift. The idea that it should attract other liability was wrong, he said.
"He certainly did not [compromise his position] and there is no evidence to that effect anywhere and the idea that he did is wrong and that's part of the tactics and antics of what's going on here. Let's call a spade a spade. It's in the interests of people to prolong a political controversy on the basis of putting out that sort of assertion," Mr Cowen said.
There were no formal guidelines in relation to this matter at that time. "Everybody knows the demeanour of that man in his position as Taoiseach, he has been a credit to this country and many people are proud of him," the Minister said.
Mr Bruton said it was the Taoiseach himself who said no politician should be beholden to private business.
Mr Cowen interjected to say that the the Taoiseach was not beholden.
"And the idea that and the suggestion, which appears to have been made here this morning, that he was compromising the performance of his duties as minister for finance, there is no such evidence and the idea that he was in some position of dependency as a result of the gift that was made, knowing as we do the circumstances at that time, we won't go into that, it was his own personal, private life, or was beholden, is wrong, it is not correct, it's not true," said Mr Cowen.
Asked if the Taoiseach should step aside and be replaced by Mr Cowen as leader of Fianna Fáil, the Minister said: "Look, the Taoiseach is our Taoiseach, he's the president of our party. He enjoys the full support of our party and everyone in this organisation because we know him and we believe him and we believe in his credibility."