The Government and the Opposition are involved in a bitter standoff over whether there should be an open-ended debate on the Flood report when the Dáil resumes this week.
Fine Gael threatened last night to "hijack" all Government proceedings in the new Dáil term unless they are allowed to question the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, directly about his decision to appoint Mr Ray Burke as Minister for Foreign Affairs in 1997.
The Government chief whip, Ms Mary Hanafin, insisted last night that the Government's position would not change, and there would be no question-and-answer session.
A Progressive Democrats backbencher, Ms Fiona O'Malley, broke ranks on the issue yesterday and backed Opposition demands that the Taoiseach take questions on all aspects of the tribunal report "in the interests of politics".
The debate is likely to be discussed at a meeting of the Progressive Democrats' Parliamentary Party on Wednesday morning.
The Government is offering time for statements on Wednesday and Thursday, with no time for questions on Mr Ahern's appointment of Mr Burke. But Fine Gael is demanding a three-day open-ended debate on both Flood and the deterioration of the economy.
Fine Gael has already signalled it will withdraw pairing arrangements with the Government unless concessions are made on questions. This will put Ministers under great pressure to be in the Dáil for votes.
The Fine Gael whip, Mr Bernard Durkan, said last night that an exception on the pairings withdrawal would be made on Wednesday when the Taoiseach is scheduled to meet the British Prime Minister' in Downing Street to discuss the Northern peace process.
The Labour whip, Mr Emmet Stagg, said the draft motion produced by the Government for debate on Wednesday and Thursday was a "feeble response" to the serious findings in the report.
The motion notes the findings of the interim report of the Flood tribunal and condemns the actions of those the tribunal has found against.
Meanwhile, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Cowen, denied a newspaper report that he had a secret deal with the Taoiseach to support him at the present time, in return for Mr Ahern backing him for the leadership later. "There are no secret deals by anybody," he said.