McDowell statement: Tánaiste and Progressive Democrats leader Michael McDowell last night said Bertie Ahern was "fit to continue as Taoiseach" following his apology and admission of an error of judgment relating to the acceptance of loans and monies in 1993 and 1994.
In a one-page statement, read on the plinth outside Leinster House, Mr McDowell described Mr Ahern as having "provided Ireland, North and South, with good political leadership, and has guided this country towards achieving goals which were only dreams in the minds of the statesmen and women who founded the independent Irish State.
"The simple, central remaining question in all of this is: 'Do the facts disclosed and the manner in which the Taoiseach has accounted publicly in relation to them render him unfit to continue to be Taoiseach'?" the PD statement said.
"Our view on today's events is that Bertie Ahern is fit to continue as Taoiseach." The statement went on: "If the Taoiseach is fit to continue in office, it would be unreasonable for the Progressive Democrats to surrender our mandate and to bring about a one-party Government until the next election by resigning office as some form of political gesture.
"Such a gesture would fly in the face of reason and common sense and of the common good, and would do nothing practical for the vindication of standards in Irish political life.
"We look forward to putting these events behind us and to completing our term of office."
Flanked by nearly all of the 12 PD TDs and Senators, including Minister for Health Mary Harney and deputy leader Liz O'Donnell, Mr McDowell said the statement was the "the unanimous view of my colleagues".
Mr McDowell and the PD parliamentary party emerged through the front door of Leinster House shortly after 8pm following an hour-long meeting of the parliamentary party in Leinster House, during which Mr Ahern's appearance before the Dáil was discussed.
Mr McDowell said that the party shared the Taoiseach's acknowledgment that his actions were an error of judgment, and that they were of a level serious enough to "demand accountability and warrant the apology".
"I believe that the Taoiseach did his best today to account over an hour-and-a-half or two hours for a number of things in respect of which people said he had things to answer.
"In particular questions were put to him in relation to his income, where he kept his money. Questions were put to him as to whether some of the money came from particular individuals.
"He was questioned at length as to whether the monies he received compromised him or whether he gave favours in return. And he answered those questions."
Mr McDowell, who once described the then tánaiste and Labour leader Dick Spring as being "morally brain-dead" rejected suggestions that the comment could now apply to him over his support for Mr Ahern.
He said he made the comments at the time in 1994 because the coalition government of which Mr Spring was a part attempted to block his efforts in the Dáil to examine the Masri passport affair
Asked whether it was wrong of Mr Ahern to have accepted the money, Mr McDowell said: "I believe it is not right and I believe it was a serious error of judgment of him to do it and I believe that he has apologised to the Irish people for so doing, and I believe that that apology is due and owing to the Irish people for so doing."
Mr McDowell, who on Thursday had stressed the need for Mr Ahern to explain who had been at the Manchester dinner, said he accepted that Mr Ahern did not want to "name names" in the Dáil yesterday because he might have named people who were not actually at the meeting.
He said he had spoken directly to the Taoiseach on the issue and that Mr Ahern was confident he would be able to "reconstitute" a list of those at the meeting in question at some stage in the future.
He denied the Progressive Democrats had lost moral ground on the issue.