Fianna Fáil will select a Meath by-election candidate before Friday, following the decision of Cllr Tommy Reilly to stand down. Mark Hennessy, Political Correspondent, reports.
Cllr Reilly's election chances were under threat once it emerged that he had bought land in 1997 with the disgraced public relations consultant Mr Frank Dunlop. Using a third party, Fianna Fáil headquarters made it clear to Cllr Reilly over the weekend that he would not be ratified by the party's National Executive.
The party's constituency Comhairle Dáil Ceanntair is to interview candidates defeated by Cllr Reilly "between now and Friday", according to its chairman, Mr Bosco Farrell.
The favourite is Mr Shane Cassells, a Navan-based councillor who did not run in the convention against Mr Reilly.
The other candidates expected to challenge are Ms Sharon Keogan, from Duleek; Mr James Mangan, Tara; Mr Dominic Moran, Kells; and Mr Adrian O'Donnell, Carlanstown.
Questioned about Cllr Reilly's withdrawal, the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, said that he had "noted" his statement. "I obviously wish Tommy Reilly well," Mr Ahern said. "It is regrettable for him, but obviously there was a lot of speculation and pressure."
The Taoiseach pointed out that Fianna Fáil had a "very strong organisation" in Meath which would "engage immediately" in finding a candidate.
Although Cllr Reilly claimed he had "co-operated fully" with a Fianna Fáil inquiry into his land deal, it is understood that the party's general secretary, Mr Seán Dorgan, was not satisfied that the files produced by him had dealt with all the questions raised.
Cllr Reilly and Mr Dunlop had used an Isle of Man-based shelf company, Hallering Developments, to buy the land, although their names were never publicly associated with it. The owner of Hallering was listed as Fovaranne Ltd, which has a post office box address in Alofi, Niue. Niue is a small island east of the South Pacific island of Tonga.
In an interview on the LMFM radio station yesterday, Cllr Reilly, who easily won a Fianna Fáil selection convention before Christmas, said that he had been victimised by the media. He was "stepping aside" because of the pressure on his family. "I am strong enough to go ahead with it, but I could not put them through it any longer," he told the station's Loose Talk programme.
Paying tribute to local politicians, Cllr Reilly said that each of his Fianna Fáil colleagues on Meath County Council had been ready to swear an affidavit that they had not been lobbied by him, or by anyone on his behalf, to rezone the 11 acres bought with Mr Dunlop at Eddoxtown, Co Meath.
The Fine Gael leader, Mr Enda Kenny, will launch a billboard campaign outside Leinster House today to promote the party's candidates in Meath and Kildare North, Mr Shane McEntee and Mr Darren Scully.
The turmoil within Fianna Fáil should benefit Fine Gael's chances in Meath, although the party needs to hold on to the seat vacated by the party's former leader, Mr John Bruton.
Last night, Mr Farrell said that Fianna Fáil's local organisation had been "disappointed" by the withdrawal of Cllr Reilly, adding: "We had seen him as having a top-class chance of taking the seat."
Mr Farrell rejected suggestions that the new selection system would be limited to people who had run against Cllr Reilly at the selection convention - a move which would eliminate Cllr Cassells. The unsuccessful convention candidates would be asked if they were interested, as would anyone else who might have decided not to run because Mr Reilly was the candidate. "People from Navan could have run if Tommy Reilly had not been running", he said.