The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, will face fresh questioning today over a conflict between statements he made about political donations to Mr Ray Burke and evidence provided on the matter to the Flood tribunal by the Tanaiste, Ms Harney.
The Labour leader, Mr Ruairi Quinn, yesterday claimed that Mr Ahern now faced "serious questions" arising from discrepancies between what Ms Harney told the tribunal last Friday and statements Mr Ahern had already made in the Dail.
A Government spokesman last night accused the Labour leader of being "entirely disingenuous" in selecting "a brief extract from a long question-and-answer session" following the Dail debate on May 28th last on the Rennicks payment to Mr Burke.
The extracts, circulated yesterday by the Labour Party, "misrepresent the position outlined by the Taoiseach to the Dail on that afternoon", the spokesman added.
The spokesman played a tape of the actual Dail proceedings that day and the Taoiseach's spoken word, rather than the written transcript, made it "crystal clear" that Mr Ahern was referring to the fact that Mr Joseph Murphy of Joseph Murphy Structural Engineering said he gave no money to Mr Burke, the spokesman claimed.
A full perusal of the debate would show that the Taoiseach made it clear he was aware, prior to appointing him, that Mr Burke had received a substantial donation. The issue was "who gave it to him and that remains a matter for the tribunal up to this day", the spokesman said.
But, according to the transcripts produced by Labour, the Taoiseach told the House that on the day he appointed Mr Burke as Minister for Foreign Affairs, he was "working on the understanding that no money had been given to him".
Accusing Ms Harney of "turning a blind eye to the appointment of Mr Burke", Mr Quinn said it was clear from her evidence to the Flood tribunal that she and Mr Ahern were aware of a £30,000 donation to Mr Burke prior to his appointment to Government.
Ms Harney told the tribunal that Mr Ahern told her he had fully investigated the alleged payments to Mr Burke and had established that he received £30,000 from Mr James Gogarty of JMSE. Of this, he retained £20,000 for his own election campaign and had forwarded £10,000 to Fianna Fail headquarters.
"We have always known that the Tanaiste decided that this was a matter for Fianna Fail. The level of her disinterest as expressed in her evidence to the Flood tribunal on Friday, however, beggars belief," Mr Quinn said.
The Taoiseach's investigator, Mr Dermot Ahern, was told by Mr Joseph Murphy jnr the day before the Cabinet was appointed that JSME was denying it made any payment to Mr Burke.
"How, therefore, can a payment be accepted as appropriate if the alleged donor denied making it?" Mr Quinn asked.
A spokesman for the Tanaiste said Ms Harney's evidence had been consistent throughout. "The Tanaiste has given her evidence to the tribunal. That is what she was told in June 1997."