Leinster House puts on its own show to pull in the punters

The National Gallery is packing them in with "Monet, Renoir and the Impressionist landscape", running until the middle of April. But there is now some serious competition next door, with the return yesterday of the 28th Dáil, which is expected to run for about the same period, barring accidents.

The public gallery was full for the opening of "Ahern, Noonan and the Pre-electionist landscape," as culture-lovers flocked to Leinster House, no doubt hoping the politicians would make an exhibition of themselves.

Only the most committed were still there after the first hour, however, as the abstract nature of the material began to take its toll.

By then the Minister for the Sport, Jim McDaid, was introducing his epic work-in-progress, "Sports Campus Ireland". Tánaiste Mary Harney, a member of the PD school, has already criticised the project, for its controversial treatment of figures. And it was hard to make out the shape of a national stadium from what Dr McDaid showed us yesterday.

The Taoiseach is not famous for his love of the visual arts. Indeed, invited to put the oppostion leaders on a canvas, he might use boxing gloves rather than a brush. Not that Mr Ahern is a combative figure, either. But just occasionally, when he's pushed, he shows a mean streak, and there was one such occasion yesterday.

Pressed by both Michael Noonan and Ruairí Quinn on the delay in appointing the extra judges requested by the Flood tribunal, both of them suggesting that he was "afraid of something coming out" from the inquiry before the election, Mr Ahern looked steely.

He would put it "in the nicest possible way", he said, adding: "I'm not afraid of nothing."

English teachers would argue that there are nicer ways to say that, but the use of street lingo was deliberate and instructive.

If anyone thought Ruairi's Quinn's use of the "B" word about Fianna Fáil was negative campaigning, Mr Ahern has shown that he's prepared to resort to double-negative campaigning if the going gets tough.