Efforts will be made today to head off Fianna Fáil TDs and senators' complaints about the state of the Government's finances and internal party communications during a parliamentary party gathering.
An economic briefing by the Minister for Finance, Mr McCreevy, planned for tomorrow afternoon, has been moved forward to this afternoon, shortly after the two-day meeting begins in Killarney today.
In his briefing, Mr McCreevy is expected to warn colleagues that tough decisions will have to be made in the next Budget to ensure that the growth in Government spending can be kept below 9 per cent next year.
Party managers hope that a speedy, no-holds-barred delivery by Mr McCreevy will help to defuse mounting anger from backbenchers, who complain that they have been kept in the dark since the general election in May.
Laois/Offaly TD Mr Seán Fleming spoke for a number of TDs yesterday when he said that they were prepared to defend the Government's actions "on the doorsteps" if they were kept properly informed.
So far, he said, the parliamentary party has been getting details of cutbacks in departmental spending "on a piecemeal basis". He added: "I would feel that backbench TDs are not getting the flow of information to explain these cuts."
Newly-elected Dublin North TD Mr Jim Glennon was more combative. The electorate, he said, was seriously dissatisfied that the Government's description of the state of the economy had changed so much since the election.
The meeting in the Great Southern Hotel in Killarney will be the first to be chaired by the Louth TD Mr Seamus Kirk, who replaced the experienced Dr Rory O'Hanlon as chairman of the parliamentary party when the latter was elected Ceann Comhairle.
The meeting - called to discuss the party's handling of the Nice Treaty campaign - will be crucial, given the growing resentment among the ranks towards the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, and a number of senior ministers.
"The two-day meeting is essentially about Nice, Nice and Nice again. We are looking forward to having a very good session. If we find that there is any clarification, or better communication necessary, then we will look at that," Mr Ahern told The Irish Times.
However, promises to keep backbenchers better informed are unlikely to be treated seriously unless these TDs believe that they have already been brought up to date on the state of the public finances.
"If Bertie comes in just offering promises like that, he will be laughed out the door. We have heard too much of that before. And those promises were never kept," one senior TD complained last night.
In particular, the decision by the Minister for Education, Mr Dempsey, to increase college registration fees without notifying TDs or consulting them beforehand still rankles.
