Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has described as "100 per cent untrue" an allegation that he intervened in a settlement between Mayo TD Beverley Flynn and RTÉ over the costs arising from her failed libel action against the State broadcaster.
Bertie Ahern has categorically denied that he intervened between Ms Flynn and RTE.
In the Dáil this morning, Mr Ahern was accused by both Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny and Labour leader Pat Rabbitte of influencing the decision by RTÉ to accept €1.25 million in settlement of her €2.8 million bill.
Despite having fought paying the bill for two years, Ms Flynn moved quickly last Monday to reach a deal following Mr Ahern's signal that she could win promotion if she returned to Fianna Fáil.
Mr Kenny and Mr Rabbitte both described Mr Ahern's media comments on June 15th as "extraordinary" when he said Ms Flynn could have a "legitimate expectation" to hold junior ministerial office within the lifetime of the current Government.
They questioned if the comments had any connection with Ms Flynn's subsequent settlement with RTÉ.
"Your comments which were quite extraordinary before the court case was due to take place, were they part of some deal?" asked Mr Kenny in the Dáil this morning.
"Obviously you were elected Taoiseach on the 14th [of June], you gave your interview on the 15th. Things became apparent shortly after that that RTÉ suddenly agreed to wave an amount of money that they were due," he added.
"So Deputy Flynn...says she has a deal with you, you say you have no deal with her, is this deal or no deal? Somebody is not telling the truth here."
The Taoiseach said he had "no involvement, no knowledge and haven't been involved in anything to do with Deputy Beverley Cooper Flynn's deal or negotiations or settlement with RTÉ, nor do I know anything about them.
"Nor, Deputy Kenny, did she raise the issue with me about RTÉ, she never mentioned it in fairness to her."
But the Taoiseach was pressed further by Mr Rabbitte who asked: "Why did you as Taoiseach feel it necessary to intervene in the extraordinary fashion in which you did, including holding out the prospect of office to this deputy who was expelled from the parliamentary party and from the party?
"How must Deputy Sean Ardagh, for example, feel given his service in this House and given the distinction with which he has served as chairman of a committee for example, and you go on television after three years of stasis on the part of RTÉ, no movement on this case at all, you make your extraordinary intervention and suddenly RTÉ settles and you say to Deputy Kenny that's a coincidence.
"Now Taoiseach which is it, are you going to lay the agreements before the house, is Deputy Flynn publicly telling an untruth when she says she has a deal with you, can we have the terms of that deal, and how is it the coincidence that RTE quickly settled after your extraordinary intervention?" Mr Rabbitte added.
Mr Ahern responded by saying the line of questioning by both Mr Kenny and Mr Rabbitte was "sinister".
"This is not a very cute issue to raise for the Opposition," Mr Ahern added.
"New deputies in this House will have no experience and to be listening to their leaders imply that a Taoiseach would ask a State company to do a settlement, would ask a State company to involve themselves in a settlement with a member of this House, on any side of this House, is a contemptuous statement and I reject it."
