Taoiseach Bertie Ahern formally anointed Tánaiste and Minister for Finance Brian Cowen as his favoured successor yesterday, describing him as his obvious replacement in "five years' time or whenever". Stephen Collins, Political Editor, reports.
The question of the succession was raised with Mr Ahern by Seán O'Rourke on RTÉ Radio. He asked the Taoiseach if Mr Cowen was as obvious a successor to him as Seán Lemass was to Eamon de Valera.
Mr Ahern replied: "I think that's fair enough. I mean I could give you a lot of political answers about this one, but I'm not going to go down that road.
"Brian Cowen and I have been friends since the mid-80s. We've worked together, he's a brilliant mind, and he's a great colleague. He has a vast amount of experience and is still not much beyond his mid-40s.
"He is a hugely experienced politician. Obviously the party will ultimately decide, but [ from] my point of view he is the obvious successor to me in five years' time or whenever."
Asked when he would step down, Mr Ahern said he intended to remain on beyond the mid-term Cabinet reshuffle he promised in his speech to the Dáil following his election as Taoiseach.
"My intention, is, of today, is to stay in this job and give my energies as I promised to myself all along, that I'd stay till the end of the term. That's my plan."
Meanwhile, The Irish Timeshas learned that as late as last Wednesday Mr Ahern approached Mr Howlin about the Ceann Comhairle's position on the day the Green Party was debating whether or not to go into coalition with Fianna Fáil. It is understood that Mr Howlin told the Labour Party parliamentary party meeting about the approach before the Dáil met on Thursday to elect the Ceann Comhairle of the 30th Dáil.
Labour had already decided to nominate Ruairí Quinn to contest the position without any expectation of winning. In the event John O'Donoghue of Fianna Fáil won the contest by 90 votes to 75.
It is believed Mr Howlin told his party colleagues that Mr Ahern made the approach in the context of the Greens refusing to go into coalition and that he also made reference to the position of Leas Ceann Comhairle, which carries the salary and rank of a junior minister, in the event of the Greens agreeing to join a three-party coalition.
Labour TD Séamus Pattison filled the position of ceann comhairle during Mr Ahern's minority government from 1997 to 2002 and he was appointed leas ceann comhairle during the period of the second Fianna Fáil-Progressive Democrats coalition which had a clear majority.
The Green Party was at the centre of controversy in its first day in Government with the Opposition parties claiming that new Minister for the Environment John Gormley has the power to over-turn a decision to build the M3 motorway over an archaeological site near Tara.
However, Labour's environment spokesman, Eamon Gilmore, insisted that Mr Gormley did have the power to revoke Mr Roche's order.
Fine Gael spokesman Fergus O'Dowd, maintained that the reason Mr Gormley had not acted was because he had been politically emasculated.
In a statement last night, however, Mr Gormley said his predecessor had been carrying out a quasi-judicial function in deciding to excavate and record the national monument, rather than leave it in place. "Without a change in material circumstances affecting this case, there is no basis for amending the quasi-judicial determination recently made. I have consulted with the office of the Attorney General who confirm this position," he said.
It emerged yesterday that the newly-appointed Attorney General Paul Gallagher SC, will represent the fruit importers Fyffes in a Supreme Court appeal due to open on Monday.
Before his appointment, Mr Gallagher advised the Taoiseach that he had a professional obligation in relation to one matter that would finish by the end of next week.