The former deputy leader of Fine Gael may seek the chair of the parliamentary party following this week's resignation from the post of Mr Phil Hogan. Mrs Nora Owen said yesterday she was considering suggestions that she put herself forward.
The vice-chairman, Galway West TD Mr Padraic McCormack, has already begun to campaign for the position, which will be filled on Wednesday week. Mr Hogan was appointed Director of Organisation with front-bench rank this week.
Mr Noonan said on Thursday he would like the parliamentary party chairman to reflect the views of backbenchers rather than to be closely associated with the leadership.
Mrs Owen lost her frontbench position this week in Mr Noonan's reshuffle but has been appointed a deputy spokeswoman on foreign affairs.
Meanwhile, defeated leadership candidate Mr Enda Kenny has said he will continue to speak on a range of political issues from the back benches rather than accept a junior spokes man's job. Mr Kenny, who criticised Mr Noonan's decision to drop him from the front bench as "sending out the wrong signal", said yesterday he would "raise issues I think should be raised. I will speak on broader political issues . . . I can conduct my affairs from the backbenches with a lot of options."
Meanwhile, the Minister for Justice, Mr O'Donoghue, has called Mr Jim Mitchell's failure to reveal who funded the private opinion poll conducted by his supporters as "a disgrace". He said conflicting statements had been issued since the publication of details of the poll, and this was unacceptable behaviour for the chairman of the Public Accounts Committee.
"The Noonan-Mitchell leadership of Fine Gael is going to extraordinary lengths to conceal from the public the identity of their business backers," he said.
"These business interests invested substantial sums of money in order to bring about a change in the leadership of Fine Gael. They have entered the political arena and the public have a right to know who they are."