Sharp criticisms of the Government's performance were expressed at last night's meeting of the Fianna Fáil parliamentary party, following its disastrous local and European elections.
The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, has, however, rejected a call from Dún Laoghaire TD Mr Barry Andrews to bring forward the Cabinet reshuffle in the wake of the party's worst election since the 1920s.
Citing European Union business, Mr Ahern said there was no time in his schedule to organise a reshuffle before the Dáil rises on July 8th, and the explanation was accepted.
Mr Ahern was speaking at a meeting of the parliamentary party, which heard repeated criticism of the Minister for Justice, Mr McDowell, and implicit criticism of the Minister for Finance, Mr McCreevy, and the Minister for Health, Mr Martin.
TDs who attended the four-hour meeting last night said many contributors claimed Fianna Fáil was paying the price for Mr McDowell's attacking style.
"They roasted him," said one TD who was at the meeting. But another said: "There was an awful lot of criticism of the PDs but there was equally staunch defence of them."
Despite some advance predictions, the meeting was calm. Donegal North East TD Ms Cecilia Keaveney said: "It was a very constructive meeting, more so than I would have even imagined. It wasn't hot or heavy."
The leadership of Mr Ahern was not questioned "by anybody", a number of TDs reported, although there was sharp criticism of some named ministers, including, it is believed, the Minister for Health, Mr Martin.
In his opening address, the Taoiseach told colleagues that he was "up for the fight" to lead the party into the next general election "if they were", although nobody interpreted this as indicating any willingness to step aside.
He pointedly referred to a number of local electoral areas where Fianna Fáil had held its own, or had limited losses, such as Sligo and Donegal. He invited colleagues for one-to-one meetings in July if they so wished.
However, Cork North Central TD Mr Noel O'Flynn said Fianna Fáil should consider a minority Government without the Progressive Democrats and should return to a left of centre position on the political spectrum. "Sinn Féin's surge in recent elections is a clear message to Fianna Fáil that we have lost touch with the electorate - Fianna Fáil must return to being a party left of centre," Mr O'Flynn told the Cork Evening Echo.
"We will not be in Government after the next election unless there is change and change at Cabinet level is essential. The public face of Fianna Fáil is the Cabinet and the present grouping does not reflect the views of the people," he said.
A large number of the 40 speakers urged improvements in the party's organisation and structures, based on the model used in the 1920s and 1930s, and, more latterly, by Sinn Féin today.
Cork South Central TD Mr Batt O'Keeffe said he did not believe that ditching the Progressive Democrats was a realistic option. He believed Fianna Fáil's problems were more complex than that.
"It's very easy to call for the PDs to be taken out of the Government but in my view, that's not the issue at the present time - to think that Michael McDowell and Mary Harney is the only problem that Fianna Fáil has is very short sighted," he said.
"There are fundamental problems with Fianna Fáil that have to be addressed - issues around policies and Ministers because anybody who's been out on the doorsteps over the past few weeks will know that the issue that kept coming up is one of arrogance."