In a staunch defence of his role in the Philip Sheedy affair, the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, has said the Tanaiste, Ms Harney, never demanded that he inform the Dail that he had contacted the Department of Justice on behalf of the prisoner.
Rejecting media reports that the Fianna Fail/ Progressive Democrats coalition was under strain over his failure to divulge his intervention to the House, Mr Ahern said last night the Government would consider a general election "around June 26th, 2002".
Mr Ahern and Ms Harney are due to meet today to discuss the fallout from revelations at the weekend that he had inquired about the possibility of day release for Sheedy last July but did not divulge this.
In spite of the Taoiseach's assertion last night that the latest developments should have no impact on the relationship between the Government partners, sources in the Progressive Democrats signalled that Ms Harney would express deep dissatisfaction to Mr Ahern over his handling of the matter.
"She asked him on two occasions to put it on the record of the Dail and he said he would. He did not," one source said.
Insisting he would have publicly confirmed his involvement "if I had the opportunity", Mr Ahern said he had read "very interesting comment" about what he had been asked to do. He would discuss this with Ms Harney.
"What Mary Harney wanted was that I should put this into the public domain. I was trying hard last week. I told several journalists. As far as I was concerned, I spoke openly all over the place about this."
She made no demands and "I agreed we would put it into the public domain in some way in case somebody would try to read something into it. Both Mary Harney and I know how people's minds work in this country, which is conspiracy morning, noon and night."
Asked if it was, in retrospect, a mistake not to have informed the Dail, Mr Ahern said it would have been "better if I had some way out".
"I find it amusing, sad and hilarious all at once that the idea of me jumping up in the Dail and saying: `Listen, now I want to say something about my involvement in the Sheedy case and the Mrs Ryan case' that the Dail would have said: `Oh, thanks very much, that is great, now we will all go out for the weekend'," Mr Ahern said.
If he had taken such an action, the Dail would have "gone into its usual ballistic self and looked for a suspension of standing orders". There would have been "ructions" if he had attempted to raise the matter in the House.
"It is a lot of nonsense," he added.
He had contacted the Department of Justice on foot of a letter from Sheedy's father, Mr Sheedy snr. He had asked the Taoiseach to "make an inquiry to the Department to get him [Sheedy jnr] day release a few days a week on a community scheme working with the elderly".
Mr Ahern said his contact with the Department had nothing whatever to do with Sheedy's subsequent release. "The issue was whether there was judicial interference that got Philip Sheedy out of jail. My inquiry had nothing to do with that."
Indicating that the Opposition intends to pursue the matter when the Dail resumes tomorrow, Fine Gael's justice spokesman, Mr Jim Higgins, said his party would demand statements from the Taoiseach, the Tanaiste and the Minister for Justice.
Both Fine Gael and Labour have stopped short of saying they would move on a motion of no confidence in the Taoiseach.
Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Minister for Justice rejected Mr Higgins's suggestion that it was impossible to believe Mr O'Donoghue could not have known about the note on the Sheedy file which confirmed Mr Ahern's involvement. According to the Fine Gael spokesman, this note - on the file since July - had to have been spotted in February after the Attorney General, Mr David Byrne, rang the Minister from Berlin to alert him to the rumours circulating about the Sheedy case.
However, Mr O'Donoghue's spokesman insisted he was not told of the note until early April. It is understood the note stated that the Taoiseach's office should be alerted if there was a development in the case.