Labour Party leader Mr Pat Rabbitte yesterday strongly complained to the party's National Executive Council that internal party enemies are trying to undermine his leadership.
During an occasionally stormy meeting of the NEC, Mr Rabbitte bitterly complained about a recent series of leaks from within the party to some newspapers, including The Irish Times.
He said he believed that those who oppose his preference for a Fine Gael alliance, rather than one that leaves options open for a possible deal with Fianna Fáil, are now using issues to oppose him.
Yesterday's private meeting of the NEC dealt heavily with Mr Rabbitte's decision to lay off two members of the party's Ely Place headquarters staff, Mr Angus Laverty and Cllr Ciarán Byrne.
Following a lengthy debate, the NEC accepted a motion put forward by SIPTU president and NEC member, Mr Jack O'Connor, which called for the normal "industrial practices" to be observed.
However, Mr O'Connor withdrew a secondary element of the motion, asking for the lay-offs to be suspended, which, if passed, would have been an effective challenge to Mr Rabbitte's leadership.
Though Mr O'Connor appears to have been trying to avoid an open confrontation with Mr Rabbitte, others were more openly critical, sources indicated.
Mr Rabbitte said he was trying to improve the party's performance and that he would shortly announce the appointment of a chief operating officer, though it is not clear how this post will relate to that of the general secretary, Mr Mike Allen.
The decision to lay off Mr Laverty and Cllr Byrne, which occurred following a consultant's review, has already been criticised by SIPTU and the National Union of Journalists.
During often testy exchanges, Mr Rabbitte was strongly supported by Ms Roisín Shortall, Mr Emmet Stagg, Ms Liz McManus and others.
Last night, the former president of the Labour Party Mr Proinsias de Rossa declined to make any comment about the lay-off decision: "This is a matter for the management of the party." Though the Kinnear report recommended job losses, it is not clear how many were proposed. The figure has been put variously at between five and eight.
