The Greens have joined an alliance with Fine Gael and Labour on South Dublin County Council, despite the refusal of the Green leader, Mr Trevor Sargent, to enter a pre-election pact with the two larger opposition parties.
Two Independents on the council have also joined the alliance, which follows the "Mullingar Accord", under which Fine Gael and Labour pledged co-operation on local councils as a precursor to a possible pre-election pact.
Although Mr Sargent made it clear last week that the Greens wanted to develop their own political identity before entering any pre-election pact with Fine Gael and Labour, a Green councillor in South Dublin said last night that there was no contradiction in the party's membership of the local alliance.
Mr Fintan McCarthy described the alliance as a "post-election pact" in the wake of the local elections last June and said it did not amount to a commitment to enter another pact before the next general election.
"The obvious thing is that this is a post-election pact, 4½ years before the next \ election, based on an agreed agenda on a number of issues," he said. The alliance was based on manifestos agreed before the poll in June, Mr McCarthy added.
The Labour mayor on the council, Mr Robert Dowds, said efforts to form the alliance were under way before the emergence of the Mullingar agreement. The alliance followed discussions initiated by Cllr Alex White of Labour, he said.
The alliance gives Fine Gael, Labour, the Greens and the Independents a majority of two on the council, on which Fianna Fáil, the PDs, the Socialist Party and Sinn Féin take up 12 of the 26 seats.
The parties have an agreement to co-operate on issues concerning planning, public transport, recycling, sports, disability and security.
